Design for next… year. The challenge of designing for material change

From the momentof purchase, pristine objectsare subjected to an array of stimuli including wear, impact, heat, light, water and air which alter their tactile and aesthetic properties. Material change is often regarded as ‘damage’ or ‘degradation’, but has potential to be used as a tool to engender emotional engagement to an object. We present a framework for designers to betterunderstand how materials change with use, and in turn how people respond to materials as they change. Key challenges are identified which must be overcome to use this framework in design practice people’s physical interaction with objects is poorly understood, it is difficult to simulate material change, materials resources for designers do not provide information about material change, and people’s responses to aged materials depend on a complex web of interactingfactors

Objective Ageing

This is a blog post that explores ageing in material objects and in people. Norms of beauty are relevant here; beauty is persistently associated with youth and newness and this has affected our relationship with our own ageing (particularly in the West) and also with objects. These associations are important because aesthetic obsolescence of objects leads to dissatisfaction, detachment, and early disposal which has significant environmental and societal impacts. Whilst entrenched Western norms which perpetuate unattainable youthful perfection, reinforce ‘skin deep’ attitudes to ageing resulting in poor self-esteem and an increasingly ‘invisible’ older population. In this post, we start to tease out and connect strands of thought, drawing on trans-disciplinary constructs of ageing within the contexts of people and objects

Ageing (dis)gracefully: Enabling designers to understand material change

From the moment of purchase, pristine objects are subjected to an array of stimuli including wear, impact, heat, light, water and air which alter their tactile and aesthetic properties. Material change is often regarded as ‘damage’ or ‘degradation’ and contributes to premature obsolescence but has potential to be used as a tool to engender emotional engagement with an object and extend product lifetimes. However, materials resources for designers rarely provide information about how materials will change in use. In this paper we draw on a combination of literature and user studies to elucidate the complex web of factors which contribute to changes in material surfaces, which we present in a ‘framework for understanding material change’. We go on to explore the role that changes to product material surfaces, and the design of objects to change in particular ways with use, could have on the transition to circular modes of consumption. A range of resources which aim to increase designers’ understanding of material change are presented, and the challenges of creating, utilising and developing these resources are discussed

Embracing material surface imperfections in product design

Imperfection is not a usual aim within the context of industrialized product design. Under general norms, products are manufactured as clones of a ‘perfect’ original and product surfaces are prized for their ‘perfect’ flawless state. The mass production of products against these principles seems counterintuitive. Yet within the world of materials, and especially considering material surfaces, imperfection is widespread. This research set out to identify and scrutinize circumstances when material imperfection in products is appreciated, from mass manufacture to artisan practices. By synthesizing literature with analyses of material and product samples, five sources of surface imperfections are characterized: inherent material properties, production effects, workmanship of risk, planned and foreseen events, and everyday wear and tear. Following this, a research-focused concept design project is reported, leading to eleven product designs that exemplify how to design for, and with, imperfect material surfaces. A significant challenge facing designers is one of persuasion: of designing products where imperfect material surfaces are regarded as contributing to rather than detracting from product value. To this end, the paper culminates in a visual guide to embracing material surface imperfections in design practice

Skin deep. Perceptions of human and material ageing and opportunities for design

In Western society there is an obsession, fuelled by pervasive advertising, with hiding the effects of ageing and maintaining skin that exudes ‘youthful perfection’. Rapid unsustainable purchasing and disposal of mass-produced objects is, in part, driven by ‘cosmetic obsolescence’ - changes to the pristine material surface which are perceived as damage and degradation. We consider the parallels between these attitudes to changes in material surfaces and human ageing, and propose that actively considering future material change in product design could increase product longevity with both environmental and social benefit

Cosmetic obsolescence? User perceptions of new and artificially aged materials

This paper presents the findings of a user study which explored tactile and aesthetic responses to new and artificially aged mobile phone cases made from bamboo, walnut, cork, leather, brushed titanium, plastic and rubber. The paper outlines test methods for accelerated ageing of the external enclosures of consumer electronics based on the types of wear experienced in use, and the use of semantic differential scales (SDS) to probe user attitudes to these materials. The results indicate that preferences for the materials tested were extremely subjective, and even a single participant can have conflicting requirements for the characteristics of the materials (for example, sleek and shiny yet easy to grip). Whilst in general participants preferred the new materials and saw the ageing process as negative, there were examples where the aged samples either scored more highly due to durability (titanium) or received positive comments about the aesthetic changes caused by severe ageing (bamboo and leather). This study captured the participants' immediate, visceral response to the materials, which may be very different to their feelings towards materials and objects that they have owned and interacted with for a period of time

Bacterial spore based hygromorphs: A novel active material with potential for architectural applications

This paper introduces a new active material which responds to changes in environmental humidity. There has been a growing interest in active materials which are able to respond to their environment creating dynamic architectural systems without the need for energy input or complex systems of sensors and actuators. A subset of these materials are hygromorphs which respond to changes in relative humidity (RH) and wetting through shape change. Here we introduce a novel hygromorphic material in the context of architectural design, composed of multiple monolayers of microbial spores of Bacillus subtilis and latex sheets. Methods of fabrication and testing for this new material are described, showing that small actuators made from this material demonstrate rapid, reversible and repeatable deflection in response to changes in RH. It was demonstrated that the hygromorphic actuators are able to lift at least 150% of their own mass. Investigations were also extended to understanding this new biomaterial in terms of meaningful work

Closing the loop on e-waste: a multidisciplinary perspective

This paper describes the challenges faced, and oppor tunities identified, by a multidisciplinary team of researchers developing a novel closed loop system to recover valuable metals and reduce e-waste, focusing on mobile phones as a case study. This multidisciplinary approach is contrasted with current top-down approaches to making the transition to the circular economy (CE). The aim of the research presented here is to develop a product service system (PSS) that facilitates the recovery of valuable functional components and metals from mobile phone circuit boards. To create a holistic solution and limit unintended consequences, in addition to technological solutions, this paper considers appropriate component lifetimes; the (often ignored) role of the citizen in the circular economy; customer interaction with the PSS; environmental life cycle assessment; and social impacts of the proposed PSS. Development of enabling technologies and materials to facilitate recovery of components and metals and to provide an emotionally durable external enclosure is described. This research also highlights the impor tance of understanding value in the CE from a multifaceted and interdisciplinary perspective

Sustainable Materialisation of Responsive Architecture

Natural organisms which employ inherent material properties to enable a passive dynamic response offer inspiration for adaptive bioclimatic architecture. This approach allows a move away from the technological intensity of conventional “smart” building systems towards a more autonomous and robust materially embedded sensitivity and climatic responsiveness. The actuation mechanisms of natural responsive systems can be replicated to produce artificial moisture-sensitive (hygromorphic) composites with the response driven by hygroexpansion of wood. The work presented here builds on previous research on lab-scale material development, to investigate in detail the applicability of wood-based hygromorphic materials for large-scale external applications. The suitability of different material production techniques and viability of potential applications is established through a detailed programme of experimentation and the first one-year-long durability study of hygromorphic wood composites in full weathering conditions. These results provide the basis for the design of an optimised responsive cladding system. The opportunities and challenges presented by building integration and architectural functionalisation of responsive wood composites are discussed based on a hierarchy of application typologies including functional devices and components, performance-oriented adaptive systems, the value of aesthetic and spatial experience and place-specific contextual integration. The design of the first full-scale building application of hygromorphic wood composites is presented

Understanding material change: Design for appropriate product lifetimes

From the moment of purchase, pristine objects are subjected to an array of stimuli including wear, impact, heat, light, water and air which alter their tactile and aesthetic properties. Material change is often regarded as ‘damage’ or ‘degradation’, but has potential to be used as a tool to engender emotional engagement to an object and extend product lifetimes. The potential benefits, and complications, associated with material change in the context of designing for the circular economy and other sustainable product service systems is discussed. We present a framework for designers to better understand how materials change with use, and in turn how people respond to materials as they change. Key challenges are identified which must be overcome to use this framework in design practice: people’s physical interaction with objects is poorly understood, it is difficult to simulate material change, materials resources for designers do not provide information about material change, and people’s responses to aged materials depend on a complex web of interacting factors