INDUSTRIAL DESIGN STUDENT
PERSONAL DESIGN PROJECT
THE DESIGN PROCESS OF 'ALUMINIUM CHAIR'
In the visual below the main steps within this design process are shown.

LEARNING GOAL
This project started with a learning goal to get more familiar working with other materials like metal. This led to the creation of a minimalistic chair constructed from sheet aluminium.
IDEA SKETCHING
In the images below the first sketches are shown.



PROTOTYPING
In the images below the first low-fi prototypes are shown. For these prototypes, paper is used to imitate sheet aluminium.



COMPUTER RENDERING
In the images (and video) below the first rendered visualizations are shown. The purpose of this step is to already see a glimpse of the final product, before manufacturing.



CAD MODELING
In this step of the design process I further developed my CAD modeling skills, which was one of my learning goals for Q3 (I learned the basics during 'Creative Mechanical Engineering' course). The CAD model was a crucial step towards manufacturing of the chair.
In the images below the CAD model and drawings are shown.



TESTING
During the testing phase of the design process I made a test piece with a special pattern designed for folding sheet metal. This pattern had a negative effect on the strength of the chair, so I decided to make the chair without the pattern.
In the images below the pattern and test piece are shown.



MANUFACTURING
In this step of the design process I went to a metal processing company, where I got to see the manufacturing processes. At this time manufacturing was an unknown area for me, this was a valuable learning experience for me. Because having knowledge about certain manufacturing processes will help me in future design projects (Engineer-centered approach).
In the images below the manufacturing process of the 'ALUMINUM CHAIR' is shown.



FINAL PRODUCT
In the images below the final chair is shown.



REFLECTION ON THIS DESIGN PROCESS
Up to now my design processes start with sketches and end with manufacturing. I started this project with little to no knowledge about manufacturing processes, so I didn't keep the limitations of these processes in mind during the first part of the design process.
During this project, order of steps resulted in some difficulties during the manufacturing process of the final product (difficult folding for machines).
Reflecting on this mistake helps me in my learning process. In my future projects I will start thinking about the manufacturing possibilities in an earlier stage of the design process (already during the sketching phase). Or maybe start my design process with the manufacturing possibilities and try to find the boundaries of certain processes.
Doing this will prevent difficulties or errors during the manufacturing later in the design process and will improve my ‘Engineer-Centered’ approach to design.
2024