Design Innovation in Biocomposite Materials Product Development
Universiti Putra Malaysia
ABSTRACT
In this paper a design innovation study in biocomposite materials product development is presented. The purpose of this study is to report recent work on the use various design innovation tools and techniques in the development of biocomposite products. The major problem in biocomposite product development is lack of systematic approach in the concept generation of biocomposite products. However, according to design experts, 70% of the cost of development of a product is decided during the conceptual design stage and yet the cost incurred in the conceptual design stage is only 5% of the total product development cost. It is therefore crucial for the designers to focus on proper generation of design concepts using effective tools and techniques. The main methodology adopted in this study is the use of design innovation tools and techniques in concept generation phase of design process for biocomposite product development. The tools and techniques used in concept generation include TRIZ, Why? Why? Why?, gallery method, blue ocean strategy, mind mapping, exploitation of existing technique, biomimetics, brainstorming, cross-industry innovation and morphological chart. These techniques are briefly discussed in terms of design of biocomposite products. The key finding of the study is the results of design concepts obtained by effective use of those techniques, where the techniques have been successfully employed to come up with innovative design concepts of biocomposite products. Out of ten techniques that had been mentioned, few selected techniques such as blue ocean strategy, brainstorming and TRIZ methods are briefly discussed. Results of conceptual design using these techniques had turned out to be very relevant in developing high quality biocomposite products. Innovation in design of biocomposite products is therefore very important if the industries were to remain competitive in marketplace.
KEYWORDS
Design innovation, biocomposite material, product development, TRIZ, conceptual design