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FOREWORDS A | ADAPTABLE A flexible worldview is fundamental for designers. As I write, the whole world is dealing with a virus pandemic. The ability to change ways of thinking, learning and working is key to being a great Product Design Engineer. While wearing multiple hats is undeniably challenging, wellrounded designers are better equipped to succeed professionally. Approaching change as an opportunity rather than a threat can positively influence both the way you work and your work itself.
A | Aileen Biagi Tutor, Y3
B | BOOK B is for book, my notebook. Putting all my thoughts down in words and sketches helps me see the best in them, the worst in them, their possibilities and their limitations. Working in my book releases thoughts and ideas I never knew were in me. If I’m stuck on a design problem, I just start writing to Aunty Book. She rarely lets me down.
B | Ben Craven Tutor, Y1
C | CONCEPT C for concept. It doesn’t start with a google search. For me, it starts with thinking about the 5w’s. In most cases, one or more of the w’s has yet to be defined. It’s the part of the process that I enjoy the most. The opportunity to ‘fly kites’ be a bit ‘Dan Dare’ - references that you have possibly heard me say in studio. Sharpen your pencils and starting exploring!
C | Craig Whittet Head of Department
Charlie Cumming designbycharlie.co.uk
AUTODESK
A | AUTODESK From the days of the early pioneers of computer aided design in the 50s and 60s who used specialist computers the size of large rooms to modern cloudbased solutions, CAD and product design have always gone hand in hand. However, CAD is more than a high-tech replacement for a traditional pen and pencil. Programs such as Autodesk Inventor allow real-time 3D manipulation of large, complex designs to a high degree of technical accuracy. This digital creation allows designers to easily iterate upon their work, speeding up the design process. As well as this, modern day CAD packages like Autodesk Maya allow quick and easy photo-realistic renders of created 3D models, showing products in context all from the comfort of a workstation. Within PDE we have learnt to use Autodesk Fusion 360 - a cloud-based package, with the addition of generative design. Generative uses AI to create a solution to a set of design requirements, often creating natural and unconventional forms. These can then be used to further improve designs.
William Johnston @johnston_willy
BALANCE
B | BALANCE Balance is behind the first law of thermodynamics and is the key to great layouts. The balance between form and function is crucial to the creation of great products. Often when developing products, we first define its function followed by form. Neither can exist without each other. There is no function without form and vice versa. Like form is the opposite of function, GSA is the opposite of UoG. This contrast creates a certain tension science versus art. PDE is the bridge between these two contrasting institutions. It sits at the cross section between engineering and product design. This equilibrium point is healthy and is the reason why PDE is fulfilling and rarely boring. Yet any equilibrium is fragile and must be carefully maintained. GSA should never overshadow UoG like form should never overshadow function. The best results are achieved when both elements are equal.
Matthew Szafranek @matthewszafranek
CARDBOARD
C | CARDBOARD Throughout all years of PDE, cardboard is an extremely useful tool for prototyping. The material is abundant throughout almost all tasks and is chosen due to it being cheap and extremely easy to work with. Within the projects we do in first year, there is a large focus on creating mechanisms and systems through hands-on experimentation with cardboard. This is hugely beneficial to learn early as creating mock-ups quickly is an essential skill within PDE. Cardboard modelling allows us to get feedback on ideas quickly from peers and helps us establish shape and scale. This technique is almost like ‘sketching’ in 3D -giving us the opportunity to expand upon our initial drawings through rough physical form better than other materials such as wood, metal and 3D prints that take much longer to produce at a higher cost.
Chelsea Atkinson @chelsea.art
DRAWING
D | DRAWING Drawings are an essential part of Product Design Engineering. Drawings are key tools for expressing ideas within all development stages in product design. They are way of recording the geometric form of the design and they allow ideas to be efficiently communicated. Drawings come in many forms such as engineering drawings, sketches and perspective drawings and can act as an extension of the designer’s short-term memory. Each type of drawing plays a productive role within PDE, supporting communication ideas between designers, manufacturing personnel and clients. Drawings act as an analysis tool whereby missing dimensions and tolerances may be calculated on the drawings as the project is further developed; serving as a completeness checker establishing an agenda of design tasks left to accomplish.
Gabriella Hussey
DOUBLE DIAMOND
D | DOUBLE DIAMOND When creating a successful product an organised design process is crucial. Design process models act as a timeline to refer back to and aim to maximise efficiency and creativity. The Double Diamond model is one of many design processes. It is a methodology created in 2004 by the British Design Council and promotes an iterative, rather than linear, approach. It emphasises both divergent and convergent thinking at different stages of the process. The four stages specified here are ‘Discover’, ‘Define’, ‘Develop’ and ‘Deliver’. The Double Diamond is a major focus in Product Design Engineering. The first diamond involves researching the current state of the issue and gathering of insights to come up with potential solutions. The second diamond comprises of ideation, iteration and testing to eventually arrive at and execute the best solution. Honing in on each diamond separately, while on this course, helps us to strengthen our research skills, iterative prototyping skills and our ability to refine a product. This, in turn, makes us become more rigorous designers.
Euan Gibson-Smith @euangibsonsmith
ENGINEERING
E | ENGINEERING Engineering is the foundation of a great design. Despite the obvious, such as a cutting edge sportscar with finely tuned aerodynamics, Engineering is the reason why all your products just work. Why a coke bottle has such a satisfying pop when you twist it open, why the watch on your wrist is still ticking, or why a hairdryer doesn’t melt your hair. Engineering skills don’t have to be extremely complex. Design Engineers often use simple maths, mechanisms and geometry to achieve their required results. However, when a design for a hair dryer requires thermodynamic heat flux analysis using finite elements or when you want to calculate a pipe’s volume flow rate of water in a hydroelectric power plant, the engineering knowledge is essential. That’s why there’s an E in PDE.
Dāavids Mekss @daavids_m
EVALUATION
E | EVALUATION Evaluation exists in product design engineering process in multiple forms. Initially, it is the selection and critical judgement of product concepts. This method allows to devote further development to the most promising ideas, yielding more successful results. Secondly, evaluation is important in the form of feedback from designer’s peers and potential end users. It yields insights that cannot be obtained otherwise and leads to positive design changes in the prototyping stage. Thirdly, a good product designer is expected to practice self-evaluation at the end of a project. Reflecting on design choices – both good and bad – allows this experience to be brought forward to future projects and brings personal growth. It is a constructive way to look back at design aspects that have worked well and discard those that have not been as successful. For these reasons, evaluation is critical in product design engineering. It is a tool that helps us select the greatest concepts, improve prototyping iterations and assess our experience for future implementation.
Jacob Bleakley
FORM
F | FORM Form and function are the essence of product design. When we think of an object, we picture it visually, piecing together all the details we can remember to create a painting in our minds. We need function, but form can touch our thoughts, reaching into our subconscious and speaking to the part of us that knows beauty and familiarity. Product semantics dictates that the form of a product must resonate with how users think. Form should give a voice to any product we design and should connect designer and user as cooperative equals. This voice must state how we will interact with the product and what the function is in order to earn a meaningful place in our lives. In product design we must know how to make a product work, and know how to make it sing, to evoke feeling. The building above, although not a product, is an example of thoughtful design. The form, pattern and colour selection bring to my mind the thought of Lego and this resonance evokes a feeling of youth and playfulness - an excellent example of how form can evoke feeling while being appropriate to the function.
Hiu Wai Law
GRAPHICS
G | GRAPHICS Graphics is an important aspect of Product Design Engineering as it is used to visualise a concept. It is essential for product designers to use visual materials to communicate an idea to a client. Graphics can be hand-drawn or created digitally. It could be sketches, renderings, or engineering drawings. The type of graphics used and amount of detail specified depends on who you are presenting to. For example, when presenting an idea to potential customers, the type of graphics should be a rendered drawing/model of the product with minimum details. Whereas for manufacturers, technical engineering drawings with details such as dimension, scale etc. should be presented instead.
Charlotte Clarke
HELP
H | HELP Input from peers and tutors is essential when designing a product. They know your project brief and can give additional advice which you may not have thought about. There is no judgement when asking for help, in fact it is encouraged. Help from a more experienced staff member making your project more developed and informed. User feedback will also improve your project; as opinion from target audiences who have used your prototype will highlight areas which could be improved on. This is invaluable in the development stages of a project. Using advice and information around you is the most important resource to Product Design Engineering.
Seán Phelan @sean.phelan
ITERATION
I | ITERATION Iteration: A procedure in which repetition of a sequence of operations yields results successively closer to a desired result. -Merriam Webster Dictionary Iteration is an integral part of our process as product design engineers. We go through cycles to improve, redesign and develop new concepts. Taking your first idea and running with it can be useful but a more successful design process will be repetitive in nature. Take an idea develop it, get feedback from user groups, make changes, refine and re-evaluate the design. With the user at the centre of the process we can make sure they are involved and key part throughout. With every iteration the design becomes better. More iterations may also however, increase expense and time but lead to a great design, a balance needs to be struck. Sometimes it can seem tedious going through the design process again after a seemingly unimportant piece of feedback, but it is these small changes and constant tweaking which result in a successful design.
Lois Jones @L.D.J_Designs
JOURNALS
J | JOURNALS Documentation is a fundamental part of any design process. It not only provides a physical record for employers or clients, but also allows the designer to see how their project has evolved. There are many types of product design journal, each with a different communicative purpose, for example: The Design Journal documents the process from start to finish and features rough sketches, concept drawings and detailed thought processes. The Reflective Journal summarises the development of the project by highlighting and expanding upon key decisions, as well as providing justification for the concepts. The Presentation Journal shows off the key aspects of the design using more finished renderings and also outlines production details and costings. This could be presented to a client to fully explain and promote the design solution. Journals can range from a handwritten, hand-drawn sketchbooks to entirely digital, on-screen formats. The range and versatility this spectrum offers is what makes every product designer’s journal unique.
Shuyue Gong @shuyuegong
KNOWLEDGE
K | KNOWLEDGE Knowledge is the most important element of PDE. learning to design a product is not a simple job. You have to develop a complete knowledge system to support your concepts. In the University of Glasgow we have different courses from Control, Simulation to Dynamics, Heat Transfer and Fluids, which provide us a great overview of Product Engineering and Manufacturing process. At GSA, knowledge of design strategies is what we are learning in the workshop. The growing knowledge of Teamworking and Communicating helps us to get more mature and more friendly. We teach ourselves new knowledge through internet and help each other to accomplish multiple challenging tasks, the knowledge that we learnt previously gets tested and practiced here. Meanwhile, new knowledge that especially belongs to us have grows quickly during the process we visit the current product companies in the industry, do research to the society around us and talk to our target users.
Ben Noar
LAYOUT
Title Page
Insert Title
Using triangles to split up the page Add concise descriptions, makings sure not to clutter the page.
Add concise descriptions, makings sure not to clutter the page.
Add concise descriptions, makings sure not to clutter the page.
Insert Title Add description here establishing a hierarchy using size and typographical emphasis. • • • • •
Draw Attention Using Different Styles
L | LAYOUT Layout is very important in product design. It is more than just placement of words and images on a page but is used to enhance the work. Layout Top Tips: • • • • •
Create a Grid Establish a Hierarchy of Information Use Boxes Utilise White Space Scale and Balance
A good layout aims to guide the eye, emphasising certain parts of the page and helping it flow. Layout can be used to create a strong sense of brand identity through a recognisable style. It is used to tie all of your ideas together and make the content easier to digest and understand. Not only does a layout present all of the content within a page but it can also be used to create a mood, convey a feeling or set a tone itself.
Aidan Gray
MATERIAL
M | MATERIAL Materials play a vital role in the world of engineering and most specifically in product design engineering. A product’s function, aesthetic and cost are all affected by the material chosen. Materials can dramatically effect the safety of a product, ably demonstrated by such engineering issues as the erosion of the cables on the Forth Road Bridge accross the Firth. The chemical make up of a material can dramatically effect its properties through varying bonds and element composition. Knowledge of these material properties is a critical key aspect which engineers must take into account. New technology, such as an application like CES, can enable quick analysis and comparison of variable materials and their ultimate suitability for a project. Material sustainability is equally important. When designing a product, recycling, biodegradability and sourcing must all be considered - especially in today’s society where environmental impact on the planet is of increasing concern.
Andrew Lunardi
NETWORKING
N | NETWORKING Networking is a key part of the Product Design Engineering journey. Through the guidance provided in classes and workshops, to the insights and connections made via guest lecturers and events, the Product Design Engineering course levels us to create wide and diverse networks. A central part of many projects within the course is to interact with and gain valuable information from people at the centre of the industries we design for. It becomes natural for us to make connections with a wide range of influential people, gearing us towards future employment, or providing us with some much-needed inspiration. With many graduates of the programme going on to work within the companies and industries they made connections with, Product Design Engineering provides a vital platform for guidance and opportunity in a career of innovating and designing for the future.
Carmen Tran @carmen__tran
OBSERVATION
O | OBSERVATION Throughout the course of Product Design Engineering, observation is a skill that is required time and time again. We observe people and how they interact with the world around them, we observe systems and we observe objects; all with the purpose of finding a better way to do things. Observation is a key research technique that informs our design decisions. By observing people, designers can understand how we interact with the products around us and it allows us to empathise with our users. This is especially important because there sometimes can be a cognitive dissonance between what people say they do and what they actually do; and only through an observer’s lens do we realise this. We also have to observe the physical world around us to understand how mechanisms and processes work. The combination of these is Product Design Engineering.
Muhammad Ahmad Bin Zia @m.ahmedzia
PROTOTYPE
P | PROTOTYPE From rapid cardboard prototyping to detailed material exploration 3D making is at the heart of Product Design Engineering. Prototyping is one of the strongest tools a designer has, it enables them to communicate and test their design proposals in a way that the user understands. Insightful user feedback drives great design processes and giving the user something physical to interact with highlights points that one could have missed or aspects that one could improve upon. Prototyping also helps to identify and formulate the main direction of the design process while significantly saving time – it can be used as user research and problematisation. Efficient prototyping is a method of iterative design development, it enables designers to communicate with themselves to resolve design challenges as it allows them to streamline the development process, focusing on important interface elements. Designers often use prototypes to explore their options before making a choice so along with development this method also helps with evaluation of concepts.
Harris Booth @hagman5
PRODUCTS
P | PRODUCTS Products are an article or substance that is manufactured and refined for sale. They are everywhere around us in many different shapes and forms with a range of functions, some very simple and some very complex. Products are vital in making the world a better place by allowing crucial services such as the health service and banks to run smoothly and efficiently. However they can also create problems, especially from a sustainability point of view. In PDE, it is our responsibility to design and develop our concepts to produce the perfect product for the right market, without adding to the unnecessary consumer product effect on the environment. A product to us is designing, developing and manufacturing something new that offers a solution to a problem or improves a situation. It is also a lot more than that; we have to think about why we are making the product, who we are designing it for, what issues we are targeting, how it will interact with the public, what services we are creating or planning to aid and much more.
Jack Stewart @jack.stewart_
QUALITY
Q | QUALITY Jospeh M. Juran, Engineer and management consultant, defines the word “quality” as having two meanings: first, the presence of features that create customer satisfaction; second, the reliability of those features. For Product Design Engineers quality is ever present. We find quality in good ideas and bad ones, lessons we can learn or inspiration we can take. Quality is a feeling of satisfaction, something everyone should strive to be recognised for. A mark of quality can be many things. Such as, the precision of the tooling, a specific material, or a unique and well thought out idea. There is also a battle of quantity versus quality. With the rise of issues surrounding climate change it is more important than ever to ensure that what we create doesn’t negatively impact the world around us. Pictured above is the Emeco Navy chair, the epitome of quality, unchanged from its conception in 1944 and much imitated. Manufactured from 80% recycled aluminium using a 77 step process and thrown from an eight story building to prove its durability.
Finlay McEwan @finlaymcewan
RENDERING
R | RENDERING Whether performed digitally in a specialised software design package, or physically with pen and pencil, rendering is how we depict our creations. Even as a scribble on a napkin, we can visualise fine details, proportions and texture. From this we can go further to explore and convey context and interaction; where the product belongs and how it is used. From a computer-generated image, an observer will know the form and the material of the product instantaneously. A hand-drawn render can more readily direct the viewer’s attention to areas of interest, taking advantage of framing and perspective. But perhaps most importantly, a quick sketch can capture the essence of an idea and document the designer’s journey as they develop their product. From this the designer can garner valuable feedback from the user before having a physical prototype. All approaches can visualise the product in its natural environment or being used by a person. Even a single hand will set the scale and tell a story of ergonomics that no amount of words could match.
Mari Ferguson @mariferguson
SUSTAINABILITY
S | SUSTAINABILITY In PDE, we aim to improve the world around us, and one of the ways this can manifest is through sustainable design. When coming up with new ideas we think about how to minimise our environmental impact through the materials we use to create the product and how to make the designs last. We always make sure we are designing for purpose, not just for profit. To make designs more sustainable we can try to minimise parts to reduce materials and manufacturing required and by focusing on creating products that last, we hope to design a more sustainable future and help to develop a more circular economy. We look at the end life of products and how materials can be collected and re-used so we can solve problems on both a micro and macro scale, by helping to resolve the climate crisis using sustainable design to solve more immediate problems.
Oliver Williams OliverTHWilliams@gmail.com
TEAMWORK
T | TEAMWORK A Short Poem on Teamwork In PDE, one of the first things you do Is to get into teams, it doesn’t matter who knows who Against other teams you’ll try and compete Combine your efforts so the others are beat They say teamwork makes the dreamwork But that’s not always true With slackers or people not helping you But don’t worry, don’t panic, it’s not all that bad Put your differences aside, you’ll all get through Get to know others and learn their workflow A bag of tricks for industry ready to go Get crazy ideas, they might just work you know Get a new sense of drive, all learn to thrive Your team will have learned many skills anew Like drawing, planning, feedback to just name a few The output you’ll get is bound to impress More important is that together you grew When your team finishes with resounding success Why not celebrate with a Tennents or two?
Kirsty Thompson @a_girl_called_kirsty
USER-CENTRED
U | USER-CENTRED User centred design is crucial for a successful PDE project and involves multiple iterations of research, design, prototype and evaluation until the end user is happy with the final solution. We design from the users perspective by placing the end user at the centre of our design process. This results in a solution that the user doesn’t even realise they need/ want. The process involves finding out as much information about the user as possible through interviews, personas, creative toolkits and many other research methods to establish the current situation. We don’t just involve the users at the start of the design process but continue to involve them throughout, asking for feedback on designs and prototypes to develop design proposals for an improved situation.
Kieran Larssen @k.larssen
VIDEO PROTOTYPE
V | VIDEO PROTOTYPE A Video Prototype is a method of communicating one’s idea in the context of the user, through the medium of film. The technique can be cheap and fast to make, whilst also producing a vast amount of valuable feedback for the designer to reflect on. The method forces the designer to think about how the user will interact with the product and how it will be used day to day. Furthermore, it can be a useful tool to use when trying to show a complex idea to someone out with the project. Throughout my studies of Product Design & Engineering, video prototyping has taught me an invaluable lesson on how to show your design process as a narrative – starting with your research insights and running up until the project’s current form. The process of making such a medium is creatively challenging, yet often produces an outcome showing the users journey, greater than any other communication method can.
Lucy McGregor
WORKSHOP
W | WORKSHOP One of the greatest parts of being a PDE student is getting access to the fully equipped workshops that are found at the School of Art. Each workshop allows you to work on projects both for university or personal, with members of staff always happy to help by giving advice or guidance. Through our course we have been able to use the laser cutters and 3D printers, not to mention the number of machines in the wood and metal workshop which have allowed us to build progressive prototypes through projects to allow us to explore different aspects of design. Working in the workshop pushes us to consider how our designs would actually work and to focus on the smallest of details to help produce working prototypes. With friendly staff always interested to learn of your current projects and training on every machine so you don’t risk any injury, the workshop is an incredible place to learn.
Eoghan Condie @EoghanCondieCreativeWorks
CROSSOVER
X | CROSSOVER Our course PDE develops the naturally symbiotic relationship between the two disciplines. At the university we learn the tools of theoretical Engineering: material science and the mathematical modelling of systems and scenarios. Answers are there in smudged black and white. At the Art School there is colour and nuance. There we are encouraged to put our learning to practice and sketch, prototype, interact, open our eyes and test our ideas. It is this combination which allows us to move our ideas from conceptual infancy to their reality - ultimately bringing about positive change to our world one design at a time. ‘Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things.’ Steve Jobs
Rebecca Esson
YOUNG’S MODULUS
Y | YOUNG’S MODULUS When designing in PDE, it is important to use engineering knowledge to inform our design decisions. The analysis of materials and their properties allow us to select the best material for a certain application and improve the performance of a product. Without these fundamental principles, we would not be able to develop our ideas into finished products. It is also important to design with sustainability in mind by using our knowledge to meet the product requirements to be fit for purpose without over-engineering and being wasteful. With all this in mind, we can create designs that are both aesthetic and functional.
Morgan Rodgers @morgans_doodle
ZINE
Z | ZINE A self-published piece of work. A platform to share our designs with others. A tiny magazine. Zines started in the early twentieth century, created predominantly to be a medium free from the corporate dominated world of mainstream newspapers and magazines. The aim was to allow for the circulation of selfpublished works that covered a range of topics from science fiction, punk rock and feminism. To begin with they were produced by hand which is still echoed today in the DIY look that Zines possess. The smaller, compact size was easy to design, produce and circulate, allowing small groups to find their voice in a time when the media was not listening. Throughout Product Design Engineering we have had the opportunity to present our projects as a Zine. We have explored different layouts, graphics and text all with the aim of learning how to showcase our research and designs in a way that easily translates to the reader. Our Zines bridge the gap between our products and the public. Our Zines give us a voice to be designers.
AUTODESK BALANCE CARDBOARD DRAWING DOUBLE DIAMOND ENGINEERING EVALUATION FORM GRAPHICS HELP ITERATION JOURNALS KNOWLEDGE LAYOUT MATERIAL NETWORKING OBSERVATION PROTOTYPE PRODUCTS QUALITY RENDERING SUSTAINABILITY TEAMWORK USER-CENTRED VIDEO PROTOTYPE WORKSHOP X-OVER YOUNG'S MODULUS ZINE
Y3
layout design Lois Jones Charlie Cumming