Case Study — Brand Identity
Structured light for a solar pioneer.
Helio needed a brand language as rigorous as its engineering. We built an identity system on the Müller-Brockmann modular grid — disciplined, functional, unmistakably theirs — and delivered a 340 % lift in qualified pipeline.
Visual Record
09 / 09Process
We mapped Helio's existing touchpoints against a strict grid audit. Every misaligned element — from pitch decks to email signatures — was catalogued. The baseline revealed a fragmented identity operating across eleven inconsistent type sizes and four incompatible logo variants.
We established a Müller-Brockmann 12-column modular grid at A4/letter and digital breakpoints simultaneously. The 8 px base unit drove all spacing decisions. Gutter ratios were validated against optical perception tests with the client's communication team.
Space Grotesk was selected for its technical rigour and humanist warmth — uncommon in energy sector communications. We set a seven-step type scale anchored to the grid baseline, with Space Mono reserved for data, labels, and technical identifiers.
From eleven legacy brand colours we distilled three: Carbon (near-black), Paper (warm white), and Signal (a single red accent drawn from the wavelength of helium emission spectra). All values mapped to OKLCH for perceptually uniform manipulation.
A single easing curve — ease-out-expo, 560 ms — governs all transitions. Elements enter along the grid's column axis. Nothing rotates. Nothing bounces. The discipline itself becomes the character.
An 84-page brand book, structured — of course — on the Müller-Brockmann grid. Twelve Figma component libraries, CSS design token exports, and a two-day onboarding workshop for Helio's internal creative team.
Measured Outcomes
6 months post-launch / Q4 2024Start a project.
We take on a limited number of projects each quarter. If you're working on something that demands this level of precision, we'd like to hear about it.