H Design and ManufactureDesign Challenge: Nursery Brief

Making your Ideas

Design Brief

Playtime Nursery are a new company in East Kilbride offering a safe, fun and interactive environment for young children to learn and play. The company have been successful in other UK towns but feel that for their company to move forward they must improve the furniture and equipment they provide in their nurseries.

From the photo on the previous slide you can see that their current furniture range is simplistic, dated and uninteresting. The company feels that it no longer meets their needs of the children they look after and care for.

The company has a considerable budget to spend and have come to Duncanrig D.E.T. Design Studio, looking for new and innovative designs. They would like to see us design a range of furniture and fittings that are exciting, interactive and fun.

On the pages that follow, the company have outlined a range of products they would like to see redesigned. They are happy for you to select any of the briefs given and would also like it if you could include some sort of learning feature in the design.

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Design Brief: Options

Clothing Storage Racks Modular Seating

RESTRICTIONS:

• The rack should be able to store several items such

as those shown of the data sheets included in this

brief.

RESTRICTIONS:

• Modular seating is seating that can be moved,

stacked, connected in different ways to provide

versatility for learning/teaching. The designs you

come up with must be modular.

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Design Brief: Options

Toys/Books Storage Racks Working Desks

RESTRICTIONS:

• These can be designed for individuals, pairs and/or

groups.

RESTRICTIONS:

• The rack should be able to store several items

such as those shown of the data sheets included

in this brief.

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Task Requirements

To complete this task you must produce a folio of work that contains the following

1. Produce a short report that analyses the brief focusing on specific design factors i.e.

aesthetics, ergonomics, performance and function. You must select and evaluate five factors.

2. Establish a specification from your research of design factors that outlines the key

requirements for your chosen product.

3. Use idea generation, graphics and modelling techniques to design ideas for your chosen

product.

4. Develop these ideas into a viable solution using graphics and modelling techniques.

5. Produce a technical development to include technical information. This should demonstrate

how the product will be manufactured, what materials it will be made from and dimensional

working drawings.

6. Produce a final solution that presents the product using graphic and/or modelling techniques.

7. Annotations that justify your design decision must be included throughout the folio.

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Data Sheets

Ergonomics Data 1

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Data Sheets

Ergonomics Data 2

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Data Sheets

Ergonomics Data 3

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Data Sheets

Ergonomics Data 4

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Data Sheets

Ergonomics Data 5

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Paper sizes being used

Data Sheets

Storage Items 1

Lunchbox sizes

Pencil case sizes

Personal Computer Sizes

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Standard Book Size

Data Sheets

Storage Items 1

Paint Pot and Brush Sizes

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Average Shoe sizes

Data Sheets

Clothing Items 1 Jacket Sizes

Rucksack

Length: 300

Width: 220

Depth: 110

Standard Rucksack size

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H TASK 1: Research

TASK REQUIREMENTS:

➢ Evaluate what the brief is asking you to do

➢ Select five key factors that you will research.

➢ For each factor consider what you have been given in the brief and then establish the key

aspects you will have to research.

➢ FOR EXAMPLE: if you were designing a chair for children you could select aesthetics as a

factor. Key aspects you would have to establish are: what colours? What shape style?

Could it have a theme based on something children like such as animals etc.

➢ For each factor you have selected consider the methods you will use to evaluate the aspects

you have considered previously.

➢ FOR EXAMPLE: For the aesthetics example above you could use online research to look

at and compare different children's products to give you an idea of what you could do

with your own design.

H Research Techniques

QUESTIONNAIRES/SURVEYS: are a good way of collecting a large number of responses quickly. They are useful when evaluating factors such as aesthetics, where pictures can be shown and questions asked to determine the consumer’s preferences with regard to appearance and styling. We can also evaluate factors like function; however, doing this in depth would be difficult via a survey, as the user cannot physically use the product and can only guess how it works from a picture and questions. Survey questions must be well considered to ensure the responses collected are useful and give us the information we require. For example:

• Do you like the kettle shown? Yes or No.This only tells us whether or not a user likes the kettle and nothing specific about its aesthetics therefore our results are limited.

• To improve responses and get more information, we may include pictures of several kettles and ask the consumer: On a scale of 1–5, with 5 being excellent, how would you rate the colour scheme of each of the following kettles?

• We could go further by asking the user to provide reasons to the previous question to gain more insight into consumer opinion.

• This response will ensure the data generated from the survey provides us with usefulinformation we can take forward into the design stage.

MEASURING AND RECORDING: is an effective method for evaluating function, ergonomics and performance. For example:• Function: If designing a bookshelf, we could measure and record a range of book sizes, allowing us to work out the best possible dimensions for shelving space.• Ergonomics: Measuring and recording allows us to effectively measure the dimensions of the human body, which are crucial in ensuring that products are suited for their human users. • Performance: In combination with a test rig, we could measure and record aspects such as sound and weight in portable speakers, allowing us to establish how well the product performs.

ONLINE SEARCHESOnline searches using the internet can be useful in helping to find information about competitor products and items such as consumer reviews of products. Images and data can then be collated, and conclusions can then be drawn from them.

H Research Techniques

USER TRIPS: involve the designer physically using and testing a product. This design analysis can relate to points highlighted from a brief analysis and will help the designer to determine potential issues/areas for improvement for the product in question. User trips can also be used to identify market opportunities for new product developments. To carry out a user trip, the designer will outline specific activities that are to be carried out in relation to the users in question. The designer may then consider questions such as:

• Who will be using the product and what issues may occur for different types of users?• What does the user want the product to do?• How will the product be used?• How will the product perform when carrying out specific functions before, during andafter use?• In what sort of environment will the product be used?• What are the priorities when using the product? For example, which functions will be used most often? The designer can record this information in several ways such as note taking, audiorecordings and/or photographic and video evidence. The data can then be used to drive the design of the product during the design phase.

TEST RIGS (PRODUCT TESTING) is a way of physically testing the performance, extremities and limitations of a product’s function, durability, materials and safety. The product will be put through a series of tests that aim to provide results based on the aforementioned design factors. Using the same example, if we performed a test rig on the kettle, we may test:• How quickly it can boil water?• How do the materials perform if thekettle is left boiling continually withoutswitching off?• Do the materials break easily if the kettleis dropped

PRODUCT COMPARISON compares similar products within a similar market area and price range. This can be useful for evaluating many factors such as function, product features and aesthetics to establish what is currently on the market and what our competitors are doing. However, it is particularly effective in evaluating value for money and cost. It is important, however, that we do not compare products designed for different markets as this can produce inconclusive results.

H TASK 2: Specification

TASK REQUIREMENTS:

➢ Based on the conclusions you have deduced from your research you must write up a detailed

specification.

➢ Your specification should include any restrictions the company have given you and should be

listed under the heading of the factors you have researched, for example:

CHILD CHAIR SPECIFICATION:

1. Function

1.1: The chair must sit a child comfortably.

1.2: The chair must be stackable for the nursery.

2. Ergonomics

2.1: The chair must be no wider then 000mm

2.2: The height of the seat must be 000mm from the ground.