Confidentiality March 30, 2012

When writing this blog i have realised that when I’ve wanted to talk about certain projects i have done or certain areas i have been involved in that it has been very difficult to explain them in a way to show what i have actually done. This is because of the clients intellectual property, i can’t actually mention anything about the projects or products we have work on or designed because of the legal rights.

After speaking with Paul and Keir I now know what i am allowed to say and what I’m not. This puts me in a difficult situation, as i have to be careful about what i say and do which could reflect upon this. I find this really annoying as i want everyone to know what work I’ve done and to see what my ideas are. Also how it has helped me develop my skills for the future.

I have been asked by tutors and as part of this blog to explain my projects and what there about, but due to this law i can’t repeat any knowledge or show any design work that could damage these rights. However i do know that when these products are out in the open i can then become open about the work  i have contributed. This however could take up to a few years which is a shame, but i totally understand the laws against this.

Unfortunately i have been limited in what i can include in my blog for my university submission. I have spoken to paul Magee ( senior product designer at HDTI) and he has agreed that the university may contact him for further information about the work i have completed whilst at placement.

Overview of placement in general

28th March 2012

As my placement is coming to an end I thought i’d have a quick overview of what i’ve been taught and what my placement experience has contributed in the past 5 months at HDTI.

Whilst being at HDTI i feel I have achieved much more than I ever thought I would. I feel my time has been used efficiently and I have used my third year to the best of my ability. I know when I finish my forth year at university i will be fully prepared for professional work and will be able to adapt immediately.

I actually feel as if i look at design in a professional way. I  I know that i still have a lot to improve on, but i have achieved so much. I have  been taught skills that i never would of, and i know that my placement year has given me lots of rewarding outcomes. I am overwelmed with my experience and would advise future students to take any placement opportunity possible.

I have a lot of Achievements and still need further development in certain areas but i will go through this clearly and fully when i write my final report.

Outlook calendar overview March 26, 2012

Whilst doing my blog I thought I should see where I started to how far I have come by looking through my calendar I had been keeping from when I started placement. I could then see everything I have achieved or needed further development with so far at placement. I couldn’t believe how much I had done, it didn’t seem like it had actually been that long. I’ve now been on placement for 5 months, it has gone so fast. I can tell the areas I have improved on and where I still need help.

I’ve really improved on illustrator, I actually enjoy using it now and understand why Keir and Paul like to use it. I feel now I am quite strong with the program and can use it on my own without any help. This has improved my self management massively, I have also improved this skill by now being able to direct and plan my work accordingly to meet tasks and deadlines which has therefore helped my time management skills. This because I now feel I can plan a timeline and actually stick to it. I can set aside time for certain projects and not worry about falling behind or running out of time.

I now feel confident when Networking, I feel I can meet clients and give them exactly what they want. Whilst on placement I have met lots of different clients and colleges who have a great understanding in the health care sector. This has been a brilliant beneficial practice. I feel confident speaking to clients about projects I’ve been involved in, and I feel like they now speak to me like a professional and respect me for my ideas and initiative.

I’ve improved my Project management skills by working on several projects at once, and I have managed them accordingly to complete them on time in the most efficient and effective way.

I have improved the quality and quantity of my work, as well as learning new programs whilst adjusting to a professional working environment.

I have juggled my two jobs whilst on my placement, and sacrificed every weekend for work, which at first I found quite challenging, but now I am able to manage my time more effectively.

Placement has been a great opportunity which has improved my skills to a much higher standard  in order to gain a good qualified job at the end.

Here is a copy of my Outlook calendar to show how I have developed my project, time, and self management during my time at placement.

Sketch sketch sketch March 22, 2012

– – 23rd March 2012

As soon as i walked in Paul decided we needed some more sketch practice, so we set to work. After 10 minutes we all presented our ideas.

10 Minute Sketch

I still needed to do more practice sketching so I’ve decided to do two 10 min sketches a day. One in the morning and one in the afternoon. Me and Maddy have both decided to do them together and then we could give each other feedback.

After our sketches we presented our ideas to each other and both our ideas were really good. Although i really struggle to think of ideas on the spot to start off with, i think i do quite well after a few minutes of thinking.

Me and Maddy also met Kieron this week, we wanted to speak to him about the briefs we have to do whilst on placement, one being this blog an the other being a presentation we have to do. We also wanted to talk to him about next year, just to check if there is anything we need to do before hand. He was very helpful and explained that the blog were doing is fine and there is no wrong way to do it. He also explained that next year when we do our masters only the final year counts towards the final mark, which we were both shocked about. This means that next year I will work the hardest I have ever worked before.

 

Achievements:

– Become more confident about my work.

– Improved my sketching skills through 10 minute sketch exercises

– Presented my work to my colleagues to explain my sketch concepts in the 10 minute sketching exercises

– Become more confident about my sketch work.

 

Areas that need further development:

– Need to develop my sketching skills even further- i need to want to learn to sketch if i want to improve.

 

A meeting with Paul March 20, 2012

20th  March 2012

Review with paul about duties, roles and tasks during placement. We were meant to do this on the first day we started but as creative futures have only just sent over the forms to fill in,we could only just do it now. So me and Paul discus what I believe my duties are. So I explained my thoughts which where:

Duties

To assist Paul and Keir with their projects and by doing this I help them with research such as product boards.

Sketch work – I help to develop ideas and create new directions for the products to take.

CAD/Rendered art work – I help create finished detailed work.

Client presentations – I meet clients and present the work I have created to them.

Training

Solidworks – learnt a totally new CAD software, still continuing to develop this further.

Adobe Illustrator – learnt a totally new program, still continuing to develop this further.

10 minute sketches – need to improve this greater, do more each day and be more willing to get them done.

Extra – further development

Learn to sketch better – more 10 min sketches, and tuition.

Learn how to present my work better for final boards – how to make it look as good as it can.

 

Achievements

-Know what my job role is

-Know what I still need to improve on

– Time management- i can work on several projects effectively and get the work done promo and in a professional way.

– Use a diary to plan my time ahead.

– Project Management- I am able to plan ahead to know when deadlines are and how long i have got to work on each project.

– I have presented my work to a client and now know what the client expects and how to present my work effectively.

 

Further Development 

-Still need to sketch better

-Still need to present my work better

-Be more self motivated

– Self management- I need to set goals and work towards them efficiently, I need to become more motivated.

– Time management- I need to plan my time more effectively so I do not become too stressed about deadlines.

– Setting out work- I need to improve my final presentation of my work. Paul is going to support me in working toward this.

Competition due March 15, 2012

12th – 16th March 

So it was the week I had to hand all my inhaler competition work in, I was nearly finished, I just needed to print my A3 boards of then I could send it of to RSA. I was pleased with the progress I had made throughout the competition and I was proud of my work. I had worked really hard whilst juggling other projects and other work. The only thing I wasn’t overly pleased with was my sketch page, I didn’t like how it was laid out, it looked slightly messy.

 

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Also this week me and Maddy started to put our first ideas together for our new project. We did some basic sketches of ideas and some online research. We were then told to put the research into  chart from basic to premium. This was a different but good way of researching existing or similar products. It gave us an idea of where in the chart we need to look further an what type of products this included. In future I will use this research technique as I feel it is very helpful.

 

Achievements:

– New research technique

– Finished my RSA work- I have improved my self management skills by being more disciplined and my time management skills  by planning my time ahead more effectively.

– Finished almost a week before schedule.

– Improved the quality of my work by laying my project out differently to my usual way – now a more professional approach.

 

Areas that need further development:

– Become less stressed about my work

– Ask when i become stuck on projects. Ask for feedback on the work so i know which ares i need to work on more and develop.

– Sketching- I need to improve my sketching ability but also become more confident with my work.

 -Laying out sketch pages

New project and finishing inhaler work

5th – 9th March 

Monday morning team meeting was actually on, which is very rare. Not much said really.

We had a brief overlook on how the enhanced care work was coming along. Keir had took everyones ideas that Caroline said she liked and put them together as one. The product actually started to look professional and close to being finished. Just a few more adjustments and then feedback from Caroline and we would nearly be done with that project. I was so surprised we got it all done so quickly. I had never got a project done so quick before. It made me realise I could use my time so much more efficiently and effectively in the future.

We now all got introduced to the new project we will be working on. I can’t say what this is except that it is a seating device for people who have difficulty with movement. I found this quite difficult as many of my ideas would not work in a normal environment. I also found it hard as i totally forgot that certain users can’t walk or have low body strength, and because this does not affect me i found it really difficult to understand how them users would feel and how they would use the product differently to myself. Paul told me that i cannot design for every user, so i think that my idea will cater towards people who are able to stand assisted as it is very difficult to design this product for people who have no body strength at all.

This project didn’t sound as interesting as the one we had just been working on. Maybe I just needed to get properly involved in the project to be more interested in it? Me and Maddy did some research into some of the existing products to get started with where we need to go with the project.

Now was time to finish my inhaler work. Because I had been working on lots of other work I hadn’t spent much time on my inhaler so i decided to dedicate certain times for this work to be done. I had finished my first and last board i just needed to do my sketches page and my development page.

I was playing with my finished model as I was thinking of my other two boards and all of a sudden it twisted all the way round like it should have from the start. I jumped up and shouted ‘it works’ I was over the moon about it. Apparently the two gaps just needed cleaning out as I was playing with it, it was removing all the rubbish from the holes.

It was Friday and Maddy was off today so it was just me Paul and Keir. I spend the day finishing my A3 boards. I wanted to do a storyboard for my development page to show how to use the inhaler. Paul and Keir both helped me do this. They helped move and set up the wacom tablet that had an inbuilt screen so I could see what I was doing. This was brilliant, it was such an easier way to do storyboards. Yet again I had been taught something new, it was another thing to add to my achievements list.

 

Achievements

-Can do more work in less time than I thought

-Used the Wacom tablet and enjoyed it

– I’ve been taught how to lay my work out  more professinally

– I know how to listen to what the designers are saying and respect their opinion because they are normally right.

– Time management- I’ve planned my time eficiently to get it finished with plenty of time.

– Self management- I had the motivation and skills required to complete my work in time and to a high quality.

 

Further Development 

-Keeping up with all the different projects

-Be more enthusiastic

– Become more patient when i’m asked to change my work

Busy week

27th February – 2nd March

First thing Monday morning I went straight in to see what my inhaler looked like, I was really excited to see it. It looked perfect, it was exactly what I wanted. I was very very pleased. When I tried to twist the two half to fit together, it would only twist a tiny bit. It was enough to lock it into place but no exactly how I would of wanted it to. The prongs must of been slightly to big for the slots. Annoying but it still worked so thats all that mattered.

 

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We also started the enhanced care work, I was really keen and ready to start this project. I started to draw my ideas down first then we had a brain storm session where we all shared our ideas and thoughts. They all seemed to like my ideas and it was nice that they took all of them into consideration. We were told to work on this project gradually and not all in one go. They said one fresh idea can be better than 10 tired ideas. So I decided to work on my inhaler for a break in-between the project.

I started to sort out my A3 boards which needed to be handed in for the competition requirements, which was quite long winded. I had to have a maximum of 4 A3 boards, so I  arranged it so I would have a research, sketches, development and a final design page on the boards.

Louise one of the other HDTI workers came down to speak to us about designing a poster for her. Me and Maddy had to both do our own separate versions as usual. We got given certain pictures and text which had to be included into this poster but we had to arrange it in our own way. My poster got chosen to be used but I had to make slight changes.

Also this week I was told I had to create a storyboard for the enhanced care work we were doing. I had to use illustrator and photoshop to make a story of a person using the product we were designing. I really wanted to know how to create storyboards so I pleased when they told us they would show us how to do it. It was very difficult at first but once I got the hang of it I found out it was easier than I thought. I had also created the packaging for the product and done some instructions to go with it. This was helpful as it gave me an insight of different ways in which instructions changed peoples opinions and how they can change the way people act towards the product.

Caroline the woman we were doing the enhanced care work for was due to come in for a talk with us about how the product was coming along. This was going to be the first time I had had proper contact with a client. I was quite nervous about this but also excited to see how it actually works with meeting clients. She seemed really nice and like she knew exactly what she was after. She took in all of our different ideas. I had to talk to her and explain the reasons for the choice of my ideas and she seemed to love everything I had done. Her favourite part of my work was the instructions and pictograms I had done on the back. I was overwhelmed that she really liked it. I had done this in illustrator and new at that point that I must of improved my illustrator skills. I knew I was better at photoshop and that illustrator wasn’t my strong area. It gave me more confidence and i now felt more comfortable using illustrator.

To finish the busy week we had all had we all decided to do some 10 minute sketches. This is where one of us selected a product and we all had to draw our own versions of this product. It  was quite difficult to come up with ideas in such short time, but its a brilliant way to help practice sketching techniques. Paul decided on drawing a pen, the next one was Keir who decided on drawing a drinking vessel for water. It was my turn to chose and I was struggling to think, Keir told me to pick a logo design, so to make it totally different I chose ‘L’s Bells’ the name of my netball team to design the logo for. It was quite fun and different to do.

We were told there would be a new project starting next week, so the workload continues.

 

Achievements

-Know to take time with projects and not to rush straight into them.

-Know how to create a storyboard

-Chose to use illustrator over photoshop for the first time.

-10 minute sketches

-Handle lots of projects at the same time

– I know how to present my work to the client effectively

– Made a contact- Networking

– Presented a piece of work that i was happy with

– I know to listen to what the client wants so i know exactly how to improve my designs to suit the clients needs.

 

Further Development 

-Not every client will be as nice as Caroline

-Try to be more enthusiastic when sketching

– Have more confidence in my work before i go into a meeting with a client.

– Practice presenting my work so i know exactly what i am going to say to the client and i am able to answer the clients questions.

– Show the client all of my work and ideas, they might like something that i don’t.

– Use storyboards for every idea i have so the client is able to understand the interaction between the user and the product.

Naidex Stand and new project

20th – 24th February 

All the information we needed  to design the Naidex stand was back and this week me and Maddy had to each come up with our own version of what we think the Naidex Stand should look like. Keir sent us some pictures of the stands basic layout and we had to use illustrator to add all the details of where everything was going to go. It was quite difficult to use illustrator and I new how to use photoshop so I decided to create it in that instead. I’m more of a fan of photoshop than illustrator, and can’t work out why Paul and Keir prefer illustrator.

Every time I thought I had finished my design Paul would make me edit certain changes, so it actually took me quite a while. It was quite tricky to change things once I had nearly finished.

We also had a discussion on a new project this week which was the enhanced care project. I cant say what the product is but it seemed to be more about designing a ‘prompt’ than a ‘product’. The prompt would be used by a primary care giver that becomes anxious and forgets how to use the 1st aid product correctly. I found this very useful for my design skills as i am designing around a range of human factors with the end result of reducing a human error. I had to design something for someone who is likely to be anxious and needs help with remembering an important first aid skill. This sounded really interesting and I couldn’t wait to start this properly next week. I had lots of ideas for this project and felt it a project I could really get involved in. It was very helpful because made me think of designing a product for a different user group.

I also finalised my design for my inhaler on solidworks this week. I was very proud I had finally finished the CAD for the design. Keir let me put it on the machine, it said it would take quite a long time to build so it would have to get left over the weekend which meant I wouldn’t be able to see it until Monday next week. Im not a very patient person either so this was a bit annoying tohave to wait.

 

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Achievements

-Keen to start new projects

-Put my final design onto the machine

– I’ve taught myself not to get so stressed and to be more patient

 

Further Development 

-Try to want to use Illustrator not just when I have to

– Understand that there are reasons behind being told to change my work – always to make it better.

Back at placement and Renault car design

Back at placement after a whirlwind of a week, I knew I needed to sort out my RSA mobile medicine competition form so that was the first thing I did. It was £35.00 to enter the competition, I thought that was extortionate, but with the help of professionals I though I had a good chance in getting through so handed in my form.  Now was just to finish of my submission requirements and make my final model.

The next thing was to come up with a design for the new Renault Twizy car. It was a student design competition that gave you the opportunity to win a years free tuition fees, so it was worth giving it a go. I had to download the car images and either print them of on draw directly onto the sheet or design them in illustrator or photoshop. At first I printed them off and started randomly drawing a design. I quite like what i had drawn so used that to copy it onto photoshop and adjusted it slightly. I was very pleased with the final look of the design and submitted it online. I then just had to wait a few days to see if I got short listed into the top 10.

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Unfortunately my car didn’t make it into the top ten. I was a bit disappointed because the cars that did make it were not brilliant, some were not very nice at all.  There was a car very similar to mine that got through which was a bit upsetting. At least I had gave it a go and can look back an learn from this experience.

 

 

Achievements

-Being Organized

-Submitted a design competition

 

Further Development 

-Learn from mistakes