Understanding the content and language of design briefs
The pre-design stage
The formal starting point for the design of a new product is commonly referred to as 'a design brief'. This is essentially a client's statement of a design problem or opportunity to which the product designer responds. The client's instruction will usually set out the design goal, context or background information, any constraints or relevant criteria. It may be a short document.
In these activities you will analyse an example design brief in English to understand the elements it contains, and to explore the meaning of some of the key language used. You will also think about what makes a good design brief for a new building.
Activity 1: Analysing an example design brief
In this activity you are going to analyse an example design brief to identify what it comprises and then consider some questions about it.
Instruction
Study this example design brief and identify all the different parts that it contains. Decide whether each is design constraints, opportunity/context, or criteria to meet. Highlight each section, and select the appropriate button below to change the colour. Then read the feedback. Open the help section first if you would like more guidance on distinguishing between 'constraints' and 'criteria'.
What is the difference between constraints and criteria?
The difference between constraints and criteria is that contraints set specific usually quantitative targets or limits for the product designer, while criteria are more flexible and might be used for judging between different product design proposals, each of which meets the specific constraint targets. Constraints and criteria are sometimes expressed as 'demands' and 'wishes' in a design brief. Demands have to be satisfied in the final design, together with satisfying as many wishes as possible.
Here are the sections relating to design constraints, opportunity/context, and criteria to meet highlighted in the relevant colours:
In contrast to a more open-ended design problem, this example brief suggests a particular type of solution, (a "trolley", rather than "furniture for home computers"). The company has done some preliminary market research, and identified a likely selling price range, the users and the range of equipment to be accommodated. It has also identified problems of form and aesthetics. It is also clear that a lot more work still needs to be done to specify more precisely the weight, volume and dimensions of typical equipment items, anthropometrics of users and the ergonomics of computer use, and potential materials and manufacturing methods for the trolley. Thus the design brief is an intermediate stage between a fundamental product idea and a full specification of the requirements the product is expected to satisfy.
Crucially, the brief: • sets the design goal, • outlines the context in which the new product must operate, • identifies the major constraints within which the design goal must be achieved, and suggests some criteria by which a good design proposal might be recognised.
Activity 2: Exploring the design before the design
Writing a design brief is a creative activity that is critical to the whole design process. Jens Bernsen, of the Danish Design Centre, has described the formulation of the brief as 'the design before the design'. By that he means:
... the decisive step in the development of a new product often occurs before the project begins ... Such design before the design does not appear spontaneously nor is its realisation separate from the whole process of creation. It is part of it. (Bernsen, 1996)
The development and elaboration of the brief proceeds through the initial exploration of concepts and ideas by the design team, with clients, managers and designers working together. In this activity you are going to explore some key points of a good design brief that Bernsen has identified.
Instruction
Study these key points of a good design brief identified by Bernsen. Explore some of the points further by answering the questions that follow. Make notes in the text area provided or select the appropriate answer. Then read the feedback.
Bernsen's (1996) key points of a good design brief: • Identify what the new product aspires to be • Describe the basic function of the product • See the product the way the user sees it • Describe the personalities of user and product • Describe the features that determine the experienced value • Tell a good story: create a product idea that can be communicated • Concentrate the brief on the essential things • Revise the brief from time to time
Identify what the new product aspires to be 1. Look at this building, shown from different angles, which is a specialist centre for people with cancer in hospital grounds. What do you think is the 'big idea' behind it?
The big idea behind this building, one of Maggie's Centres, is that it is a place of peace and support.
As a designer it is important to ask what the product should be if it did not exist but had to be thought out from the beginning. This goal may be unobtainable. But even if it cannot be reached, it can provide valuable ideas for the brief on the new product. Seek to identify The Big Idea of the new product in the design brief.
Picture provided by Maggie's Centres. People can find out more about Maggie's, the design of the organisation's Centres and the support they offer to people with cancer by visiting http://www.maggiescentres.org.
See the product the way the user sees it 2. Which aspects of the cancer centre buildings are most important to the patient, medical staff, maintenance staff?
For the patient the most important aspects of the building may be that it helps them to feel valued, looked after and calm as well as having easy to use facilities. For medical staff a building that allows examinations and treatments to be carried out easily and also has space for taking breaks and meeting together. For maintenance staff being able to access facilities easily to maintain and repair fittings and also being able to clean easily as well as storing cleaning equipment is important.
As a designer, it may help to describe the use of the building in a series of scenarios. Try to identify the features that are most important to the user. Remember that 'the user' in reality is usually many types of users, including children, the elderly or disabled users and speak with some users representing different needs. Complaints about existing buildings can be a source of useful ideas for finding out how the user would like to experience the product.
Describe the features that determine the experienced value 3. Which qualities might be important when designing (a hospital)?
Important qualities might be lightness, air flow, acoustics, connection with the natural world, colour and materials.
Design is not just about how things look. The user also experiences a building through its sound, smell, textures and materials, and infers its invisible qualities through direct experience of those qualities that are immediately understandable. The concept of a new building will include how the user interacts with it, its ease of use and the feelings it engenders this interplay between user and building can have a decisive impact on its experienced value.
Concentrate the brief on the essential things 4. Are these primary or secondary demands for a hospital? Easy to keep clean Corridors and doors wide enough to move beds and trolleys Large car park Kitchen situated to minimise time between cooking and delivery to wards Flexible space on wards Storage for linen on each ward Storage for medicines All large equipment (CAT scanner, Xray, etc) on same floor Building and toilet facilities accessible to wheelchair users Centrally placed haematology lab
Primary demands for a hospital: Easy to keep clean Corridors and doors wide enough to move beds and trolleys Kitchen situated to minimise time between cooking and delivery to wards Storage for medicines Building and toilet facilities accessible to wheelchair users
Secondary demands for a hospital: Large car park Flexible space on wards Storage for linen on each ward All large equipment (CAT scanner, Xray, etc) on same floor Centrally placed haematology lab
A good brief concentrates on what is essential and distinguishes between primary and secondary wishes and demands. Design is seldom a matter of satisfying every conceivable demand, usually it is a matter of finding a balance between different wishes and demands and of doing the essential things properly. Non-essential and peripheral demands cause harm in a design brief because they take up space and deflect attention from what is really important.
Reference:
Bernsen, J. (1996) 'The design before the design', Danish Design Centre Magazine, no. 2.
