Branding
Background and Opportunity
Cray, Inc. is a supercomputer solutions manufacturer based in Seattle, Washington. Currently it is the second largest worldwide supercomputer vendor. The current logo for Cray, Inc. is the same it’s been since it’s conception in 1972, and now doesn’t reflect the cutting edge technology the company produces.
Since 1972, there have been many changes in logo design, especially with the rise in digital media such as the Internet. With an updated logo and identity system, Cray, Inc. can unify it’s brand with their drive to be the front runner of new technologies.
The tone of the new logo must convey Cray, Inc.’s commitment to science and technology, driving both into a new era of computing power. In addition to this, the new logo must also convey the, “simple elegance,” that Cray, Inc. provides clients.
Branding
Sketches and Development
It was Cray supercomputers that helped unlock DNA sequencing and other scientific breakthroughs. Because of this contribution, I focused on recognizing Cray's history by exploring organic and DNA shapes. I ultimately settled on a double ribbon shape, as it resembles the double helix structure of DNA. The composition of the double ribbons also forms a stylized letter "C".
While my initial concepts were to make the logo flat, none of them felt sophisticated enough for the redesign. I researched other logos concepts and found an article/video about how the 2016 Olympics in Rio's logo was designed. The designer, Fred Gelli, said he wanted to have the logo work in 2 and 3 dimensions. This inspired me to make the ribbons function the same way, in both 2D and 3D. I used color gradients to give the appearance of depth in the foreground and background. I kept Cray's original blue color for brand association.
Branding
Logo Application
Once the final logo design was determined, I approached a wide variety of applications for the logo. While there were conventional uses of the logo, such as business cards and letterheads, Cray provided a great opportunity to apply the logo on other collateral and products. Many of Cray's supercomputers come with vinyl graphics on the sides of the cabinets. I designed a graphic for their latest supercomputer at the time, the Titan.
More logo applications can be viewed below, as well as the full academic case study for this project.
