Harland & Wolff
Founded in 1861, Harland & Wolff is one of the most storied names in shipbuilding, responsible for vessels including RMS Titanic and the UK’s first supertanker, Myrina. After decades of decline and strategic drift, the brand had become fragmented and in need of renewal.
The revitalised brand supported high-stakes bids, including a £250m UK National Flagship submission, and the company went on to secure a £1.6 billion Royal Navy contract as part of Team Resolute.
We were tasked to create a visual identity and design system that honours this engineering heritage while looking decisively to the future. The new identity, built around precision, scale and industrial confidence, introduces the H&W “mast” and “angle” motifs, a disciplined typographic system and a palette of deep blacks and signature yellows.
Documented in comprehensive guidelines and applied across communications, print, signage, uniforms, vehicles and digital channels, the brand brings cohesion back to a complex business and underpins Harland & Wolff’s return as a revitalised industrial icon.
1860s — 1990s. The H&W monogram has changed little since 1861.
Today. The refined wordmark, honouring H&W's heritage, yet sufficiently timeless to remain relevant long into the future.
From Titanic to Tomorrow: To mark Harland & Wolff’s 160th anniversary, colleagues at Engage created this exceptional video producing a powerful narrative that pays homage to the shipbuilder’s rich heritage while firmly looking to the future. It also acts as a celebration of the brand identity we crafted: highly adaptable and cohesive across digital, print, and beyond.
For the £250m UK National Flagship competition, we designed and oversaw the production of a very high specification bid presentation pack incorporating an large (A3 landscape) book, design schematics, boards and a custom-engineered hard case, applying the identity with the same care and authority as the ships themselves. Tactile, detail-focussed, and luxurious.
The revitalised brand formed part of the platform from which Harland & Wolff, as part of Team Resolute, went on to secure a £1.6 billion contract to deliver ships for the Royal Navy.
Uniforms, environmental graphics, and supporting event materials.
Annual Report & Accounts: concept, design and template artwork.
Brochures featured a fold-out plan of each shipyard (Belfast shipyard inside the cover shown above). A tactile nod to the company’s design and engineering DNA and the sheer scale of the sites and facilities available to its prospective customers.
Harland & Wolff has built everything from RMS Titanic to supertankers and offshore structures, making it one of the world’s most recognisable maritime brands.
We created comprehensive guidelines to support the brand system, with practical day-to-day documentation, clear rules and tools, downloadable assets and a live brand portal to ensure consistency across teams, sites and suppliers.
Project details
Disciplines
Brand Identity
Editorial Design
Environmental Graphics
Digital Experiences
Sector
Shipbuilding
Engineering
Defence
Colophon
Gavin Martin
Credits
David Cordner — Photography
John Gilchrist — Photography
Engage — Titanic to Tomorrow video
GMC — National Flagship renders
Harland & Wolff —Archive images
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