The Three Stages of Design Process
Designing is one of those creative fields that often gets put into the mix with the word “art” and “design.” However, a design is anything: a blueprint or description of something, usually of a tangible object, or the end result of that blueprint or description in the shape of a tool, manufactured item, etc., or the culmination of that blueprint or description in the shape of a product, machine, etc. The word “design” is therefore often used interchangeably with “schema,” “blueprint,” “design plan,” etc. The word “design” is therefore not an art but is the methodology of creativity – taking something abstract and arranging it so that something concrete and useful emerges from the arrangement.
A design is therefore a blueprint or description of the arrangement of things or the outcome of the design process and therefore describes the object, or products, etc., which will be designed or produced. The word design can also apply to the methodology of product design or marketing. For example, if someone wants to design a computer, a set of computer parts, software, etc., then he or she would use the words design, computer software, etc. Similarly, if someone wants to design a painting, a sculpture, a logo, etc., then he or she would use the words landscape design, interior design, etc., to describe the object or its outcome.
In contrast to the applied arts, which refers to a descriptive, mapping and organizing system for discovering and expressing ideas in relation to a subject, architecture is descriptive, mapping and organizing process; it does not express ideas, as in art, except in a very generalized way. Art is the descriptive form of the applied sciences, while architecture is the objective form of the applied sciences. In applied science, the words are always scientific jargon. But, in art, there is flexibility and freedom from the usual constraints of science. This is because in art the process design produces an output that is not necessarily the end result of the process or physical activity; it becomes the very thing that it represents.
Problem-solving is one part of the design process that cannot be excluded. A designer must be a problem solver, able to solve problems practically. Also, an effective problem-solver can make the designing process faster and save time for the whole team. The designer must also be able to generate ideas and concepts on the basis of his or her problem-solving skills. A good designer should have a wide range of experience and be able to apply advanced technologies and designs in real world scenarios.
Designers are called so because they take action based on the conceptual design or model that they have created in terms of idea, vision and illustration. The term “design” can also refer to the set of activities performed by a designer, from sketching, planning, development, printing, marketing, and promotion. The most popular design methods today include computer aided design (CAD) and software-aided design (SAD). A designer can acquire skills in other disciplines as well. For example, many architects, interior designers, web developers and others have acquired CAD skills for use in the design process.
The term “engineering design” refers to the process used in designing a product, such as a building or machine. There are three major objectives in engineering design: production efficiency, safety and scalability. The process can be classified into three key stages: idea generation, rational model building and engineering design implementation. In the first stage, the engineer collects and analyzes data. In the second stage, the rational model is built and tested, while in the third stage, the design is implemented using fabrication and production techniques.
