Product, Service, System

Rational                                      

This product is a fresh take on the popular vertical garden concept. It will be implemented in to urban, apartment living environments. The garden is located in communal areas and will be shared by all residents.

The gardens bi folding form and modular pot system encourages the residents to manipulate the components to suit their communities needs. The garden can be lowered or heightened using a threaded  jack, this determines how many pots can be implemented. The lowered garden is ideal for children and the elderly. 

Furthermore in contrast to the typical vertical garden this garden is double sided. This allows garden users to surround the garden, making gardening more socially interactive.  Once installed the residents can connect to the linked webpage. After signing up and registering they are welcome to access, information on maintaining their garden and are also encouraged to share photos, videos and recipes related to their garden. This webpage connects urban garden users to create an online community.

The system uses less water than traditional gardening techniques, through recycling its own water. It does this through mimicking 'herons' fountain theory. Where by water flows in to the reservoir (1), the air this water replaces is pushed in the reservoir (2) which furthermore pushes the water from this reservoir  into the upwards piping which than will re filter from the top reservoir onto the plants.

This PSS will play a part in preventing mental illness through the enrichment of the social connections between urban residents and online social web. It will promote a healthy diet through the production of organic, fresh produce and the access to healthy recipes. The wall will lastly encourage consumers to challenge them self to learn and develop new skills relating to the garden and the food being produced using the walls produce. 

Peer Blog Reviews

http://rowenagoodall.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/blog-post.html?showComment=1378185710896

http://mad-attic.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/blog-post.html?showComment=1378186813560

http://oun-dos-tres.blogspot.com.au

http://apoondesign.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/shamp-eze-final-shampoo-concept.html

http://ryan-go.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/accessible-packaging-autotech-engine-oil.html?showComment=1378195920452 

Disassembly of espresso machine

This activity including the use of Green Fly was very useful. I found it very insightful. I gained much knowledge on how many different parts, and the multiple holding fixtures (created from several differing materials) which are used to produce an electrical product. I discovered the inconvenience of disassembling this product and how hard it would be to recycle. And was astounding at the amouth that would end up in landfill. The energy used to produce, transport and recycle this product are shocking. 

video reviews

As designers, if we want to create innovative products.  To do this the designer must considered the socio, economical and environmental impacts of the product or system. when designing.  Designers often make small improvements to systems or products but fail to broaden their scope, hence never truly solve he bigger issues. We must look at the larger picture in order to be able to find the best solution to a problem. This broad thinking must be done at the start of the design process e.g. brain storming. when refining concepts, and choosing which one is best suited it is ideal to compare each idea against a criteria of how they impact society and its surrounding environment. 

Manufacturing processes create tones of waste. A main cause of unnecessary waste is products which have been purposely designed with a short lifecycle.  They are designed to break fast, so that the consumer is forced to repurchase the product over and over again. a great example of the is is mobile phones. To reduce this unnecessary waste we can make product more durable, they cane light in weight (use the smallest amount of material needed to produce them), make them easy to repair and upgrade or allow them to have a elegant end of life. The ideal situation is to have a closed loop cycle. However it  is important to remember that a extended lifecycle is appropriate for every product, e.g. take out containers, or crisps packaging should not be designed to be around for years to come. Some designer find it hard and expensive to produce sustainable products, and often see the criteria as a burden. However by making you product more sustainable you can attract new buyers, and new revenues can be made.  

'Energy is the ability of work'. The amount of energy it not only used to produce a product including manufacture and transport, but also the energy used to keep it functioning or the use stage is often highly unsustainable. It is the designers job to help the user to use energy more effectively by knowing the energy system and knowing where their designs fits in to this system. Designers can often minimise consumption by eliminating energy lost e.g. produced by mechanical friction, heat transfer or fluid drag.  

CORMAC PACKAGING - WEEK FOUR

FEED BACK

Scott

Refining the shell shape to decrease material may be a good option. Under cuts must be addressed to ensure the product can be molded. Look at simplifying the mechanism. Can the amount of parts be reduced?  Look at adding texture to bottle, for interest and/or grip. Refine spout; change shape, or make multiple outlet which the coffee can be poured from. 

Christina- Add cues to know that you use a push down mechanism to open the outlet shaft. Perhaps remove the spout, the spout references a teapot and makes the pot look like it would contain liquid more than dry instant coffee. 

Doug- Choice of the beige colored shell and the material thickness makes the packaging look like porcelain, making it look more like a product than packaging. Add texture or change the top profile to add extra interest. 

CORMAC PACKAGING - WEEK THREE

FEED BACK

On the right track. Both concepts could be good with exploration and refinement. 

Soap packaging would be great to redesign. It would be ideal to redesign the soap bar form, perhaps the packaging could be a gripping device, making the soap easy to hold. 

The coffee jar is a good concept as it is an every day struggle for a parkinson's sufferer to untighten and realign the thread.  Explore and refine form. 

Max- In reference to the coffee jar- Great idea as Parkinson suffers struggle to untighten and realign threads. Keep the form simple, focusing on an ergonomic form. Form does not need a handle. Think about having a spout, for easy alignment and pouring. 

Pat- Added texture or a pattern onto the coffee jar, created through embossing and/or frosting the glass will create interest.