Design the Next Flexoptix Buff
The Buff is a 360° tube worn at RIPE, NANOG, DENOG, and forty other network engineering events worldwide. It ends up in datacenters, airport terminals, and server rooms at 3am. It goes on stage. It is how people in this industry recognise each other in the wild.
Your mission: design the next revision. Think layer-2 comfort, full-duplex breathability, sub-10ms deployment time — and a design that actually passes a peer review. The winning design goes into production, permanently credited as "Designed by [your name]."
Step-by-Step Guide
Download the Official Template
Start at contest.flexoptix.net. Scroll to the Design Template block below the countdown and download the official Buff template. Available in two formats:
- .ai — Adobe Illustrator source file. Use this if you work in Illustrator or any tool that can open AI/PDF files.
- .pdf — Print-ready reference. Open in any design tool (Affinity, Inkscape, Photoshop, etc.) as a reference layer.
Create Your Design
Open the template in your preferred tool and design on the 360° canvas. The template shows the exact proportions and wrap geometry. Key things to keep in mind:
- Visibility matters. The best designs make someone across a crowded room squint and think "wait, is that…?" That moment. That's the target.
- Restraint is engineering. A busy design that looks great on screen often fails when printed on fabric and stretched around a human neck. Clean and intentional wins.
- Go somewhere. Network topology as art. Optical references. Abstract geometry. Things that mean nothing to someone at a bus stop and everything to someone who's survived a botched maintenance window.
- Design to last. The current Buff is still showing up at events it wasn't designed for. That's the standard you're designing against.
Create Your Account (or Sign In)
To submit a design you need an account on the contest portal. You have two options:
Flexoptix Customer Click "Sign in with Flexoptix Account" in the auth dialog — this uses Keycloak SSO, one click, no new password needed.
New Participant Click Register in the top navigation. Fill in the form below — no purchase necessary.
Submit Your Design
Once logged in, click ▶ Submit Your Design on the homepage. Upload your file, add a title and a short description of the concept behind your design.
Wait for the Verdict
After the 31st July 2026 deadline, the Flexoptix team reviews all entries. Finalists are announced on 8th August 2026, and the winner reveal is on 28th August 2026.
The winning design goes directly into production. You'll be contacted by the Flexoptix team for the Creator Experience prize package.
What's Allowed — and What Isn't
Read these before you submit. Designs that violate these rules will be disqualified without notice.
⚠ Intellectual Property & Usage Rights
By submitting a design, you confirm the work is your own original creation and that you hold all necessary rights to it. You grant Flexoptix GmbH unrestricted, irrevocable, worldwide rights to use, reproduce, publish, and distribute any submitted design — including non-winning entries — across all channels and media, without further compensation beyond the prizes stated for the winner. Credit will be given where production allows.
Submission Timeline
All dates are final. Late submissions will not be accepted.
BuffOps Creator Experience
This is not a €50 gift card.
It's not a drone. It's not "exposure" — a word that has never once paid anyone's rent. The winner gets their name on an object worn by network engineers, sysadmins, and people keeping the internet running, at events around the world.
"DESIGNED BY [YOU]" — Permanent Production Credit
On every official Buff we produce. Permanently. Globally. For as long as we make them.
Global Campaign Feature
Your name and your work across the full Flexoptix campaign worldwide.
First Production Batch
A limited winner set from the first run off the line — before anyone else.
Flexoptix Engineering Jacket
Not in the webshop. Not available anywhere. Winner only.
Premium Travel Suitcase
Flexoptix Travel Edition. Built for people who actually go places.
Flight to Darmstadt + 2 Nights for 2
Come to HQ with someone. We'll show you where this thing gets made.
HQ & Engineering Lab Tour
No script, no PR handler, no talking points. The real place.
Dinner with the Team
A real dinner, real people, real table. Not a branded lunch event with name badges.
Creator / Winner Shoot
Professional photos and feature material. You designed the thing — you should look like it.