Any business that is design conscious and at the same time also aware that its own design is an element in general design development, profits from it and gives it impetus. A company of this kind has its own perception of what is known as visual appearance, its corporate identity. It is not just the visual image of the entire company in the sense of a suit, it is an attitude, just as reagan and gorbachev show a different attitude whatever they are wearing. At ERCO design goes into the product, use and aesthetics are developmental criteria alongside technology and usefulness from the beginning. The Aicher office, which has existed since 1946, was probably the first German graphic design office to concern itself with visual communication in the sense of visual appearance.