Dean Aarnout  Brombacher informed the ID staff of the situation last Friday. According to him, the main reason for the deficit is the lack of money from government funds (NWO, STW) and businesses. “We haven’t been able to create enough new projects”, says Brombacher. “The fact we’re a relatively young department is an issue in this matter. Our foundation is not yet solid enough for businesses to take a chance with us. Things like that take time.”

Too much time, as it turned out. In 2012, the financial support from Central Funds at TU/e stopped when really the department wasn’t ready for that. Brombacher: “It’s easy to say that in hindsight. I don’t want to blame anyone. Maybe we didn’t think about how we were to furnish our ‘home’ after our start-up period. There was no coherent vision on research.”

In order to fortify their foundations, the department has been working on setting up a tenure structure over the past years. “We have that structure now, so we can go on the road with that. We’ll start ‘tomorrow’”, says Brombacher. He considers parties like TomTom, Adidas, Nike, insurance companies, automotive and home care businesses to be great potential partners for the future. “We’re looking for companies that combine industrial design and ict.”

Another thing that will undergo a drastic change is the way the department secures government funding. “That method is to be made more transparent and effective, as that would increase our chance for grants and limit our losses”, says Brombacher. The department has appointed eight professors who will be in charge of setting up this new structure.

Apart from strengthening the ties with companies, the Departmental Board is critically assessing major financial items on the budget. It turns out the department spends a lot of money on freelancers. Brombacher can imagine part of that work being taken on by employees.

The dean expects the master program to change the most. “It’s where we want to create new and attractive positions.”

Industrial Design isn’t the only department that’s struggling financially. Mechanical Engineering is in a pickle, too, says Dean Philip de Goey when asked. He can’t and won’t disclose any more information. ‘Yes, we’re dealing with a negative exploitation result. Since we’re in the middle of finding a solution, that’s all I can say about the matter.”