Crank and File is a collection of critical design work led by Oliver Bates and Ben Kirman.

It all started when Ben asked Oliver if he’d spoken to gig economy couriers as when presentating research on designing technology to help couriers be more effective.

Oliver and Ben have collaborated with a number of colleagues. Firstly, thanks to all the couriers we’ve spoken to who are out their grafting and supporting their communities. Huge thanks to Carolynne Lord, Hayley Alter, Adrian Friday and Tony Pickering for their research, design and illustrative work. Thanks to Ann Light, Jamie Woodcock, Lily Irani and Shawn Lawson for advice throughout the journey. Thanks to partners Co-operatives UK, Miralis Data, and Future City Logistics for industry perspectives on the social impacts of the work.

This work has been enabled and funded through the EPSRC, Not-Equal+, and “spare” time that we’ve stolen back from our employers.

If you’re interested in some of the more “traditional” research outcomes and resources check out Switch-Gig, FlipGig, and FTC2050.