The making of the SG-Trans website

The company transports around 30% of the total volume of gaseous products produced in Russia. The website has to emphasize the status of the country’s leading railroad carrier and demonstrate the scale of the company’s business.

Deciding to build the concept around the company’s symbol, a fire-breathing dragon.

First trying to show the size of the gigantic mechanical beast next to a tiny freight train along with some facts about the company’s performance.

Deciding to show all the figures in the shape of the dragon from the logo. SG-Trans is a large organization that is not shy to talk about its performance.

Emphasizing the role of SG-Trans in the country’s energy supply: the dragons carry the world on their shoulders.

The client says that the first design can be improved, although it’s not clear yet what the mechanical dragon will look like.

Diving into the world of robots. Exploring various drawing techniques.

Making the first sketch.

Creating a rapid prototype of the website and presenting to the client.

The graphic solution is not approved.

After some consideration and not entirely realizing what he’s getting himself into, the designer suggests to render the dragon in 3D. Finding free models of dinosaurs on the internet to demonstrate the idea. Decreasing the number of polygons to make them look more like a mechanical model, rendering.

The art director unexpectedly approves the idea. Starting to elaborate. Stocking up on various models: robots, transformers, railroad cars. Taking them apart and putting together in a single model. Assembling an approximate scene for the main page.

Art director: The face is stupid and it doesn’t look like a dragon. This is a dinosaur, and the client needs a dragon.

Choosing a more predatory face and giving the dragon a body kit made of freight car parts.

It’s still a dinosaur and the tank cars look like scuba gear. Dragons must have wings and flames! And also more mechanical details.

Rendering. Typesetting the mock-ups and presenting to the client.

The client says that besides liquid petroleum gas, SG-Trans carries oil, petrochemical and steel and coal cargoes. And also that the company’s branches perform repair and maintenance of railroad cars. Which means that there have to be five dragons, one for each service. And yes, it still looks like a dinosaur.

Deciding what to do next. Maybe, color coding will do?

The art director asks the designer to go see what dragons look like in the real world.

It’s clear that we need a new model to continue experiments.

Color-coding the services.

Placing the dragons on the main page. Thinking of a way to switch between services.

Working with the body kit. Cutting up a tank car to make wings.

The dragon is approved. Making sketches of the key pages of the website.

Polishing the details. Working on the appearance of mock-ups, typesetting a lorem ipsum page.

Starting to assemble the website.

At the same time the client asks us to produce a wall calendar with dragons. We start the simultaneous process of creating models.

Ultimately the calendar comes out in blue shades.

Adjusting the website mock-ups to match the new color scheme.

Making the final decision on how the dragons will be displayed on the main page.

Choosing the best perspectives of the dragons for product pages.

Rendering and drawing final images.

Finalizing the typesetting, testing the website, making corrections.