CHAPTER ELEVEN Industrial Design EXHIBIT 11-4 Evolution of Motorola flip phones. Shown (clockwise from top left) are the MicroTAC (1989), StarTAC (1993), 60 (2001), and RAZR (2004) models. Comte of Matera208 Chapter 11 In 2003, Motorola launched a product development effort to augment its very successful bbut aging lines of flip-style (or clamshell) mobile telephones with an exciting new prod- uct. The StarTAC and V-series platforms had each seen several generations of products released since the early 1990s, eventually including models for every major worldwide ‘market and standard, The RAZR design emerged from a product vision to be “ thinner than other mobile telephones on the market and striking in its This design required a new architecture, entirely distinct from the existing product plat- forms. Upon its introduction in 2004, customers judged the ultra-thin RAZR design, shown in Exhibit 11-1, to be just as radical as its Motorola flip-phone predecessors when. they were released. Sales to carly adopters came quickly after a successful market introduction in which Hollywood celebrities were shown with the product. Surpassing Motorola's expectations, RAZR sales reached millions of units within one year of launch. This success can be attributed to several factors: + Small size and weight: With its slimmer form factor, the RAZR. was “more pocket- able” than other mobile phone models. The RAZR had a thickness of 14 millimeters and a weight of 95 grams, making it the thinnest and one of the lightest mobile phones oon the market at the time. + Performance features: The RAZR featured an integrated VGA camera; a large, backlit keypad; and a large, bright, color display for new video and graphic applications. In- stead of a headset jack, the RAZR utilized Bluetooth networking for wireless headset accessories. Superior signal reception and transmission were achieved with a novel layout in which the phone's antenna was positioned below the keypad and away from the user's fingers, which can block weak signals. + Superior ergonomics: The RAZR’: sleek, ergonomic design complemented the human face. The shape of the handset, particularly the angled position of the display with respect to the keypad section, conformed to the user for superior comfort. The spac- ing and position of the buttons on the keypad were based on accepted standards, and extensive testing allowed for fast and accurate dialing. The folding design allowed the user to answer or end calls by opening or closing the phone with one hand, aided by a recess between the two sections of the clamshell. New software for navigation and new shortcuts for entering text facilitated use of text messaging and other applications. As with all Motorola products, the RAZR was designed to meet rigorous specifications. It could be dropped from a height of more than 1 meter onto a cement floor or sat upon in the open position without sustaining any damage. The RAZR could also withstand temperature extremes, humidity, shock, dust, and vibration. + Materials: The RAZR utilized several advanced materials to enhance both perfor- mance and appearance. These included a laser-cut keypad with laser-etched patterns, ‘magnesium hinge, ultra-thin anodized aluminum housing, polycarbonate composite antenna housing, and chemically annealed glass with a thin-film coating, + Appearance: The sleck design and metallic finishes gave the RAZR a futuristic look associated with innovation. Because of its aesthetic appeal and highly recognizable appearance, the RAZR quickly became somewhat of a status symbol for early adopters and created strong feelings of pride among owners.Indusrial Design 209 The RAZR development team included electrical, mechanical, materials, software, and manufacturing engineers, whose contributions were instrumental in developing the tech- nologies and manufacturing processes that allowed the product to achieve its form factor, performance, and weight. However, without the contributions of industrial designers, who defined the size, shape, and human factors, the RAZR would never have taken its innova- tive, ultra-thin form. In fact, the Motorola team could easily have developed “just another phone,” smaller and lighter than the previous flip-phone models. Instead, a revolutionary concept generated by the industrial designers on the team turned the project into a dra- matic success, Industrial designers are primarily responsible for the aspects of a product that relate to the user's experience—the product's aesthetic appeal (how it looks, sounds, feels, smells) and its functional interfaces (how it is used). For many manufacturers, industrial design has historically been an afterthought. Managers used industrial designers to style, or “gift wrap.” a product after its technical features were determined. Companies would then market the product on the merits of its technology alone, even though customers certainly evaluate a product using more holistic judgments, including ergonomics and style. Today, a product's core technology is generally not enough to ensure commercial suc- cess. The globalization of markets has resulted in the design and manufacture of a wide array of consumer products. Fierce competition makes it unlikely that a company will enjoy a sustainable competitive advantage through technology alone. Accordingly, com- panies such as Motorola are increasingly using industrial design as an important tool for both satisfying customer needs and differentiating their products from those of their com- petition This chapter introduces engineers and managers to industrial design (ID) and explains how the ID process takes place in relation to other product development activities. We refer to the RAZR example throughout this chapter to explain critical ideas. Specifically, this chapter presents, + A historical perspective on ID and a working definition of 1D. + Statisties on typical investments in ID. + A method for determining the importance of ID to a particular product. + The costs and benefits of investing in ID. + How ID helps to establish a corporation's identity + Specific steps industrial designers follow while designing a product + A description of how the ID process changes according to product type. + A method for assessing the quality of the ID effort for a completed product. What Is Industrial Design? ‘The birth of ID is often traced to western Europe in the early 1900s. (See Lorenz, 1986, for an account of the history of ID, which is summarized here.) Several German com- panies, including AEG, a large electrical manufacturer, commissioned a multitude of craftspeople and architects to design various products for manufacture. Initially, these carly European designers had little direct impact on industry; however, their work resulted in lasting theories that influenced and shaped what is today known as industrial design.210 Chapter 11 Early European approaches to ID, such as the Bauhaus movement, went beyond mere functionalism; they emphasized the importance of geometry, precision, simplicity, and economy in the design of products. In short, early European designers believed that a product should be designed “from the inside out.” Form should follow funetion. In the United States, however, early concepts of ID were distinctly different. While early European industrial designers were architects and engineers, most industrial design- ers in America were actually theater designers and artist-illustrators. Not surprisingly, ID in the United States was ofien at the service of sales and advertising, where a product's exterior was all important and its insides mattered little. Pioneers in US. industrial design, including Walter Dorwin Teague, Norman Bel Geddes, and Raymond Loewy, emphasized streamlining in product design. This trend is best evidenced in U.S. products of the 1930s. From fountain pens to baby buggies, products were designed with nonfunctional aero- dynamic shapes in an attempt to create product appeal. The auto industry provides an- other example. The shapes of European automobiles of the 1950s were fairly simple and smooth, while U.S. cars of the same era were decorated with such nonfunctional features as tailfins and chrome teeth. By the 1970s, however, European design had strongly influenced American ID, largely through the works of Henry Dreyfuss and Eliot Noyes. Heightened competition in the marketplace forced companies to search for ways to improve and differentiate their prod- ucts. Increasingly, companies accepted the notion that the role of ID needed to go beyond mere shape and appearance. Success stories such as Bell, Deere, Ford, and IBM, all of which effectively integrated ID into their product development process, helped further this thinking, By 2000, industrial design became widely practiced in the United States by profes sionals in many diverse settings ranging from small design consulting firms to in-house design offices within large manufacturing companies. Motorola's industrial designers comprise a department titled “consumer experience design” and participate fully in all new product development efforts ‘The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) defines industrial design as “the professional service of creating and developing concepts and specifications that optimize the function, value, and appearance of products and systems for the mutual benefit of both user and manufacturer.” This definition is broad enough to include the activities of the entire product development team. In fact, industrial designers focus their attention upon the form and user interaction of products. Dreyfuss (1967) lists five critical goals that industrial designers can help a team to achieve when developing new products: + Utility: The product’s human interfaces should be safe, easy to use, and intuitive. Each feature should be shaped so that it communicates its function to the user. + Appearance: Form, line, proportion, and color are used to integrate the product into a pleasing whole. + Ease of maintenance: Products must also be designed to communicate how they are to be maintained and repaired. + Low costs: Form and features have a large impact on tooling and production costs, so these must be considered jointly by the team. + Communication: Product designs should communicate the corporate design philoso- phy and mission through the visual qualities of the products.