Work Collection
Horizon, Turning Complex Energy Infrastructure Into a Clear Digital Story
Energy & Data Infrastructure
Saas website
B2B
My Role
End-to-End UI/ UX Designer
Duration
Oct 2025- Feb 2026
Company
TrikThom
Employment type
Freelancer
Final Design
When a Powerful Product Is Hard to Explain
When I first started working on Horizon, the product was already strong. Very strong. Horizon is a modular energy data and management platform that connects meters, sensors, assets, analytics, reporting, and control into one unified system. Technically, it was impressive. Architecturally, it was flexible and future-proof. But there was a problem. None of that strength was visible on the website.
Horizon struggled with a familiar challenge: how do you explain something complex, technical, and infrastructure-level, without overwhelming or oversimplifying?
The website needed to do more than “look modern.”
It needed to tell the story of how Horizon works, who it’s for, and why it’s different, all within seconds.
Desk research
Survey
Information Architecture
Wireframing
Competitor analysis
Prototyping
Design system
High-fidelity UI
Motion design
Understanding the Real Problem
This wasn’t a visual redesign problem. It was a communication problem. Horizon’s audience includes Energy engineers, System integrators, Facility and site managers, Developers. These users didn’t want marketing language. They wanted clarity, control, and proof. So instead of asking “How should the website look?”, I reframed the question: “What does someone need to understand, trust, and feel, before they request a demo?” That question guided every decision that followed.
Design challenge
One of the main design challenges in the Horizon project was how to present a highly complex, multi-layered system without overwhelming the user or oversimplifying the product.
Competitive Analysis
Understanding how competitors communicate
Before jumping into design, I took a step back to analyze the market and understand how similar products present themselves. I mapped out patterns across multiple competitors; how they structure their websites, where they place trust signals, and how they attempt to explain complex systems.
What I noticed was a clear repetition: many relied on static visuals and heavy text, especially when explaining integrations and data flows. There were strong moments, like well-structured sections or simple diagrams, but also clear weaknesses where complexity turned into confusion.
This analysis helped me define a direction for Horizon; to keep what works, avoid what creates friction, and shift the focus toward a more visual and interactive way of explaining the product, making complexity easier to explore rather than harder to read.
Feature Comparison
Breaking down what competitors actually include
Once I found the main pain points, I worked with my mentor and used the " 5 whys" method to dig deeper and find out what was causing those issues, not just using AI as a fancy tool, but first finding the real root problems.
To keep my ideas fresh, I also researched how leading companies use AI on their websites. And honestly, as I explored different sites and solutions, I realized that AI alone isn’t always the answer. So I saw how others tackled similar challenges and rethought my approach and looked for more user-centred solutions.
structure (IA)
Structuring the Product Into Something Navigable
After understanding how competitors structure their websites, I focused on redefining Horizon’s navigation and overall information architecture. Horizon has many layers, and without a clear navigation, users could get lost before understanding the product. I recognised the architecture by grouping content into simple, meaningful sections and breaking the product into its core parts. This made the experience feel lighter and more predictable, helping users move through the website with a clearer sense of where they are and how everything connects.
Turning Idea into UI
Translating Strategy Into Design
At this stage, the focus shifted toward translating the defined structure and approach into a clear visual direction. The design decisions were informed by earlier insights, including competitor patterns, user expectations, and the need to simplify complex content through visuals and interaction. This phase was centered on defining and aligning the direction, with validation planned for later stages as the product evolves.
Prototyping
From Static to Interactive
At this stage, I focused on bringing the interaction ideas to life through prototyping. The goal was not to test usability in a formal way, but to understand how the experience feels in motion — how content appears, how sections transition, and how users move through the page. By prototyping key parts of the website, I was able to refine the pacing of information, making sure the experience stays engaging without becoming overwhelming. This step helped bridge the gap between static design and a more dynamic, interactive experience.
What I Learned
This project was especially exciting for me because it allowed me to work beyond static design. I explored interaction and motion as part of the experience, using prototyping to understand how the interface behaves, not just how it looks. It was also my first time experimenting with tools like Figma AI to quickly test ideas and iterate on concepts.
Working on a B2B product like Horizon, which is both technical and complex, pushed me to think differently as a designer. Instead of simplifying the product itself, I focused on making its complexity understandable; translating it into something more tangible, structured, and easier to navigate for users.
Although I didn’t have the opportunity to test the design with real users at this stage, the process was guided by research, competitor insights, and continuous alignment with the client. This helped ensure that decisions were grounded and intentional, while leaving room for future validation and iteration.