Manuel Tavora
Verified Expert in Design
Designer
Barcelona, Spain
Toptal member since January 23, 2022
Manuel is an award-winning, versatile designer with 20+ years of comprehensive international experience developing exceptional projects and products in the US, Europe, and China. With superb project leadership abilities and personal management skills across multinational environments, Manuel is an expert in industrial and graphic design and architecture. He also has strong proven problem-solving and analytical skills, a fast-learning curve, and the ability to adapt to evolving industry trends.
Portfolio
Riga Rail Baltica Master Plan, Railway Station Canopy and Bridge Repurposing
Dygma Raise Split Ergonomic Keyboard for Esports and Gamers
Experience
- Adobe InDesign - 12 years
- Furniture Design - 10 years
- Graphic Design - 10 years
- Industrial Design - 10 years
- Project Management - 6 years
- Design Management - 6 years
- Architectural Design - 6 years
- Interior Design - 6 years
Tools
- Adobe InDesign
Work Experience
Co-Founder & Head of Design
Tawo Design
- Awarded winner of the China International Lighting Design Awards (2020) for the design of a LED chandelier.
- Designed and develop a wide range of products through completion, such as lighting, bathware, consumer electronics, ceramics, furniture, and more.
- Oversaw a team of Chinese designers, providing creative direction on all projects and ensuring they were completed on time and within budget.
- Sourced new clients in China from various regions and industries, followed up on evolving client requirements, and actively responded to their concerns to promote client ownership.
Country Manager China & Head of Design
Workplane Design
- Awarded the winner of an iF Design Award (2019) for the design of an audio mixer.
- Completed multiple projects in consumer electronics, lighting, bathware products, faucets, furniture, accessories, kitchenware products, and more.
- Ran the studio's day-to-day activities by scheduling tasks, sourcing new clients, delivering quotes, and collecting honoraries. Recruited and led the industrial design team.
- Liaised regularly with clients through all project stages—design development, CMF, DFM—and managed the supply chain.
- Achieved a 4-fold increase in the number of Chinese projects compared to the period prior to my arrival.
- Traveled and networked extensively in China’s Pearl River Delta Region like Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Dongguan, and Zhonghan.
Lead Architectural Designer
Collaborative Architect Makers
- Co-designed a prize-winning submission to the Rail Baltica Competition, including the master plan, railway station canopy, and heritage stainless steel repurposing, in Riga, Latvia.
- Collaborated in designing the prize-winning submission for the Cala Figuera Mahón Port Authority competition in Menorca, Spain, including the master plan and landscaping.
- Created the design proposal for Tramway Station at King Saud University, Saudi Arabia.
- Coordinated and designed a wide range of competition booklets and presentation boards for international architecture competitions.
- Authored various conceptual design, engineering, environmental, and accessibility reports for competition submissions, written in English.
Industrial Design Lead
Manuel Távora Design
- Completed Google offices' 2nd-floor fit-out, more than 2000 sqm at Torre Picasso, Madrid.
- Delivered the design repurposing of the INESC-ID computer science research lab in Lisbon.
- Created the design of an office layout proposal for Red Bull.
- Designed a wide range of brand identities for institutions and companies such as the Oyster Brand, the science summer school, a computer coding company, a public opinion and sentiment tracking website, and a delicatessen shop.
- Recruited new clients and delivered customer satisfaction, thus earning referrals that led to new business.
- Wrote countless design reports in support of architectural submissions in professional English.
Senior Project Manager & Senior Architectural Designer
AZPML – Alejandro Zaera-Polo Architecture
- Delivered the detailed façade design of John Lewis’ department store at New Street Railway Station, Birmingham, UK.
- Designed and project-managed a media façade proposal for Marks and Spencer in Shanghai, China.
- Oversaw the worldwide delivery of numerous expressions of interest (EOI), pre-qualification questionnaires (PQQ), requests for proposals (RFP), requests for quotations (RFQ), and design submissions in Europe, Southeast Asia, and America.
- Liaised with multiple relevant stakeholders—structural, M&E, environmental, landscaping, and more.
- Built and issued dozens of 100+ page booklets, presentation boards, and other deliverables for design submissions.
- Authored various design reports in support of architectural submissions written in English.
Business Development Manager & Senior Designer
FOA – Foreign Office Architects
- Built and issued dozens of 100+ page booklets, presentation boards, and other deliverables for design submissions.
- Oversaw the worldwide delivery of numerous expressions of interest (EOI), pre-qualification questionnaires (PQQ), requests for proposals (RFP), requests for quotations (RFQ), and design submissions in Europe, Southeast Asia, and America.
- Liaised with multiple relevant stakeholders—structural, M&E, environmental, landscaping, and more.
- Designed and project-managed the Shenzhen University Mixed-Use High Rise building shortlisted proposal, a 140m tall skyscraper featuring hotel (30k m2), office (45k m2), retail (25k m2), parking and transit interface, in China;
- Created the design and managed the layout project for Plaza María Pita, including urban design and furniture and the shortlisted Zara Flagship Store concept design, in Rome, Italy.
- Designed and project-managed a bus shelter concept proposal for Birmingham New Street Railway Station, multiple Lighting fixtures for Reggiani, and a collection of benches, bollards, and paper bins for Ceranco, Porcelanosa.
- Authored various design reports in support of architectural submissions written in English.
Education
Diploma in Automotive Engineering – Advanced Design in Catia V5
Centre de Formació Professional d'Automoció de Catalunya - Barcelona, Spain
Diploma in Computer Graphics – Diploma Maya Professional for Visual Effects
Escape Studios - London, UK
Postgraduate in Industrial Design
Glasgow School of Art - Glasgow, UK
Master's Degree in Industrial Design
University of Lisbon - School of Architecture - Lisbon, Portugal
Certifications
Maya Professional for VFX
Autodesk
Skills
Tools
Adobe InDesign, Autodesk Maya, Adobe Illustrator, CorelDRAW, CATIA, Rhinoceros 3D, Adobe Photoshop, KeyShot, SOLIDWORKS, AutoCAD, Adobe CC, Keyboards
Industry Expertise
Architecture, Retail & Wholesale
Other
Furniture Design, Industrial Design, Presentation Design, Lighting Design, English, Presentations, Graphic Design, Interior Design, Project Management, New Business Development, Design Management, Architectural Design, Public Speaking, Branding, Infographics, Visual Design, Leadership, Analysis, 3D Rendering, Contract Negotiation, Audio Streaming, Consumer Electronics, Pattern Design, Google, Supply Chain Management (SCM), Patterns, Design Patterns, Façade Design, Commerce, Commercial Interior Design, Spain, United Kingdom, 3D Architecture, Master Planning, Public Transportation, Railway, Latvia, Eastern Europe, Europe, Museums & Exhibits, Art, Product Design, Gaming, UI Design, UX Design, Mobile UX Design, Brand Design, Logotype, Faucet Design, Creative Design, China, Portugal, 3D Interior Design, Workplace Design, Landscaping, Design, Urban Planning, Conceptual Design, Design Leadership, Design-driven Development (D3), Product Conceptualization, Construction Management, Documentation, Recruitment, 3D Modeling, Construction, Urban Design, New Products, Visual Effects (VFX)
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