Lab+7

Bill Moggridge defines ‘design as a collaborative process’ as the naturalization of the combined effort of consumer and developer. He puts forth that you can’t just design with physical attributes in mind, you also have to design for interface, interaction design etc. The best way to design something is to tell a story with it so you cover all of the different aspects. Who knows better what they want/need than the people themselves. Moggridge’s ideas also focused on involving people in a more intimate way.

An example of collaborative design is when engineers worked with surgeons when developing medical tools. Yes, an engineer may know how to mount a drilling tool onto a suction tube however how tangled up the tube and power cord to the drill will get with other wires in a surgery room is not within their repertoire simply because they’ve never been in that situation. This is why it’s so important to be as inclusive as possible in your design process so the most effective and efficient product can be constructed.

Another example of collaborative design is when Scott Adams, the writer and creator of the Dilbert comic strip, worked with a group to create a cubicle that even Dilbert would like. What ended up being created was much more than 4 and a half walls, it was a humanized workspace designed for efficiency as well as keeping a strong personalization aspect that would make the worker feel more at home. Giving opportunity to be recognized and give others a chance to recognize other individuals. Humanize, involve people in a more intimate way.

“Flow” is a bamboo lamp that was designed to solve the issues of crime and violence on the Colombian seaside. The issue at hand is that these beautiful areas become dangerous after dark because of the lack of light. No electronic network can reach to the beach so in order to solve this problem a real eco-product was necessary. This innovation grasps the power of the constant coastal winds to produce a self maintaining light source through the use of the principle of a vertical wind turbine.

It is designed in such a way that it is almost completely decomposes except for the LEDs and wires. Rather than using concrete as its base which is straining as well as harmful to the environment, the team fixed the lamp in place by using criss-crossing bamboo bars. The spiral skeletal structure is what makes this design work, allowing the light source to catch the wind from every direction.

The involvement of the community was invaluable for understanding what resources are available to them which lead to the use of bamboo which is one of the cheapest and easiest commodities to find in Colombia. It is also important to understand the native culture’s manufacturing ability. The assembly of the lamp was designed to be simple and easy without precision or exactness required. The use of bamboo as the base is another good example of collaborative design because concrete is not only ecologically harmful but also inaccessible.