Abstract

Globalisation has been proven to promote the commercialisation of consumer products and allowed designers to explore a range of global suppliers, materials, and manufacturing for the production for furniture goods. However, the design and manufacturing stages of a product is a large logistical cycle that acts as a major contributor towards greenhouse gasses and CO2 emission levels, through the transport and freight required to move materials, parts, and products, and the energy required to manufacture and process these. In response to these effects, frugal innovation can be used as a sustainable design approach, which involves key areas of reduction and simplification of parts and processes, as well as exploiting local manufacturing. To this end, relevant literature and methodologies have been mined for specific data and knowledge to inform an iterative design process. This data is used concurrently with physical testing, with a focus on metal tubing and the possibilities of this material, in conjunction with frugal innovation, to create the design intervention of a seating item of furniture. This innovative design will display the research findings that were uncovered throughout the project and offer a possible solution to the problem of creating innovative sustainable products.

Design Intent

The design intent was to design a statement chair that embodies the core characteristics of frugal innovation through minimised parts and more streamlined manufacturing. Rather than employing frugal innovation as an economical tool, the sustainable benefits were considered for the design of a chair. Tusk explores this through three hypotheses: simplification and minimisation of parts and processes can create sustainable benefits; utilising local manufacturing can decrease logistical cycles while displaying specialised skills through design; and restricting materials and available methods of production can lead to a more creative design process and reach more aesthetic innovations.  

Based on accessibility, the project focused these hypotheses around utilising local metal fabricators and the available material of metal tubing. The design of the chair was to gravitate around obtainable tools and methods of production used by the fabricator, so it could be entirely manufactured in one location, thus minimising transport between stages of production. In the context of global production, metal fabrication is very common within international industrial areas, so the chair could be produced locally within the market it is to be sold in. Tusk also displays the limitations of metal tubing through experimentation. This poses as an example of the unique forms that are achievable with using other accessible techniques and processes. Through testing and development, the shape of the feature could be controlled with moulds and allow for greater design input. The chair was to be a carbon neutral design while utilising as few parts as possible. Tusk is entirely made from aluminium tubing and elbow sections. By using stock parts, intricate forms and angles can be achieved without the need of highly specialised machines and manufacturers who may be difficult to access. Rather than being a more commercially viable product, the purpose of Tusk Chair was to explore the limitations of available materials and bring new, unconventional ways of production to everyday local manufacturers

Bio

Nathan Martin is a Product Design Honours Student at the University of Technology Sydney. Nathan holds a Bachelor of Design in Product Design and has a strong interest in furniture and objects. In past projects, Nathan has demonstrated high regard for craft, leading to showcasing materiality, and high standards of attention to detail within design and the design process. Through an Honours degree, Nathan explores unique form and aesthetic sensibility through his interest in furniture and honest design, to solve broader social and environmental issues.

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