With all the buzz around service design, customer experiences and the focus on "intangibles" I feel that I sometimes forget that there is still product innovation where new designs of tangible products turn into radical innovations in the respective field. The article "Speedo: Innovation in the Aqua Lab" in BusinessWeek is a nice reminder that innovations in product design are still essential for a sustainable business.

Dozens of records already have been broken by swimmers wearing the new Speedo and TYR suits in competition, leading to some complaints that such models give wearers an unfair advantage or do not comply with guidelines set by FINA, the swimming world governing body, which has already approved both suits. However, at a meeting held over the weekend at the World Championships in Manchester, Britain, to consider the criticisms, FINA confirmed, "All swimsuits approved so far are complying with specifications."

Read the full article here.