Retail Stores @ 118 Maling Rd Canterbury (Near Canterbury Train Station) Open Monday-Saturday 9:30am-5pm Call 130 000 3126 | Chadstone Shopping Centre (near Baby Bunting )
Retail Stores @ 118 Maling Rd Canterbury (Near Canterbury Train Station) Open Monday-Saturday 9:30am-5pm Call 130 000 3126 | Chadstone Shopping Centre (near Baby Bunting )
Innovation pushes the industry of toys, creating imagination and concocting newer ways of learning, growth, and play for children. Take, for example, Air Toobz-one very unique creation by inventor Brad Owen, which melds the joys of physical activity with more cognitive benefits. The following blog goes into how it was brought to life and design issues that challenged its inventor along the way before partnering up with Fat Brain Toys.
For Brad Owen, founder of Air Toobz, this idea was born pretty well from a parent's observation alone: kids love playing, and kids love to learn. With an engineering background on his own, Brad would work on a toy that introduced imagination with physical activity. Here's the concept: make something that lets kids build, let them create, all in learning about air pressure and stability, engineering in basic principle.
I wanted it to be more than just a fun toy," Brad explains. "I wanted it to be a curiosity developer and to help kids understand how things work. " The toy is comprised of flexible tubes and air-powered components that allow children to build what they like and experiment with airflow.
It is never easy to turn an idea into an actual product, and Brad had his fair share of design difficulties in developing Air Toobz. First, there was the right air-powered mechanism that needed to be just so these tubes had to be flexible for kids to bend them, and at the same time, sturdy enough to live through endless use.
"The air-powered system had to be consistent, safe, and easy for kids to use," Brad recalls. The team spent months perfecting the design so that the airflow was effective yet safe allowing for injury. They also had to make sure the tubes were lightweight and easily managed by young hands.
The other significant challenge was that of the relevance of age. Brad wanted it to be a toy versatile enough to be played with by the youngest child who could build simple structures with it while being complex enough for the older child to do intricate designs with. This ability to achieve this delicate balance between simplicity and complexity lay at the heart of this toy's wide appeal.
Once the core design was in place, Brad went in search of a partner to help bring Air Toobz to market. That partner came in the form of Fat Brain Toys, a company founded on a commitment to imaginative, high-quality educational toys. "Fat Brain's focus on innovative, educational products made them the perfect partner for Air Toobz," Brad says.
After years in the toy industry, Fat Brain refined it to a T-from just design tweaks right up to meeting the industry safety standards. The people from this company also worked with Brad as they went through testing prototypes, adjusting packaging, and putting in production.
The collaboration with Fat Brain was what got it out into the world," Brad explains. "They helped us not only fine-tune the product but gave very valuable insights about marketing and distribution. "
Probably one of the most salient features of Air Toobz has to deal with teaching children some not-so-elementary notions in engineering. By bending the tubes, kids learn about airflow pressure, structural stability, and how things work in hands-on ways for kids to explore scientific principles while having fun.
It invites creativity to the fullest tower here, a tunnel there. It allows experimentation between tubes and air-powered equipment. The fun play combines problem-solving, learning through experiments, and several hours of playing.
In building the entire Air Toobz, safety is taken into consideration. The tubes consist of a nontoxic material, and its components are safe for a child. The products passed the highest degree testing criteria for safety assurance among the population of playing children. Well-made means this is quality construction and should last through years of use.
It is light and easy to carry and store. The flexible tubes can be packed away nicely; this makes it ideal for families and educators alike looking for space-reducing toys.
Air Toobz is a good toy for children. Come to my playroom to select it.