A set of nine principles for distributed-design information storing

The issues of distributed working are many, with problems relating to information access and information acquisition the most common (Crabtree et al., 1997). Keeping track of project and team information is becoming more complex as design is increasingly being carried out collaboratively by geographically dispersed design teams across different time zones. The literature notes that little prescription or guidance exists on information management for designers (Culley et al., 1999) and Hicks (2007) highlights a relative lack of overall principles for improving information management. Additionally, evidence from earlier studies by the author into ‘How information is stored in distributed design project work’ reinforces the need for guidance, particularly in a distributed context (Grierson, 2008). Distributed information collections were found to be unorganised, contained unclear information and lacked context. Storing and sharing of distributed information was often time consuming and the tools awkward to use. This can lead to poor project progress and can impact directly on the quality and success of project outcomes (Grierson et al., 2004, 2006). This paper seeks to address these issues by presenting the development, implementation and evaluation of a set of Principles and a Framework to support distributed design information storing in the context of a Global Design class. Through both quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods the Principles were found to help in a number of ways – with the easy access of information; the structuring and organising of information; the creation of an information strategy; the making of information clear and concise; the supporting of documentation during project work; and the strengthening of team work; all helping teams to work towards project outcomes

Distributed design information and knowledge : storage and strategy

This paper discusses the storage and strategy of distributed design information and knowledg

Culture and concept design : a study of international teams

This paper explores the relationship between culture and performance in concept design. Economic globalisation has meant that the management of global teams has become of strategic importance in product development. Cultural diversity is a key factor in such teams, and this work seeks to better understand the effect this can have on two key aspects of the concept design process: concept generation and concept selection. To this end, a group of 32 students from 17 countries all over the world were divided into culturally diverse teams and asked to perform a short design exercise. A version of the Gallery Method allowed two kinds of activity to be monitored – the individual development of concepts and the collective filtering and selection of them. The effect of culture on these processes was the focus of the work. Using Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, the output from the sessions were reviewed according to national boundaries. The results indicate that individualism and masculinity had the most discernable effect on concept generation and concept selection respectively

Towards Principles and Project Memories for Distributed-Design Information Storing in Engineering Design Education

The issues of distributed working are many, with problems relating to information access and information acquisition the most common (Crabtree et al., 1997). Little prescription or guidance on information management exists for designers (Culley et al., 1999). This thesis examines how engineering design students store information in distributed team-based project work. From these findings a set of guiding Principles for distributed-design information storing (d-DIS) are developed to support students undertaking distributed project work and to better prepare them for their role as graduate engineers in an ever increasingly international and globalised market. The thesis also presents the development of the concept of Project Memories, shared information spaces. It is crucial to provide an archive or repository that functions as a collective memory in order to support distributed design collaboration

The Internet as a tool for communication in design projects

When entering a modern design practice, architecture & design students must not only be skilled in current CAD applications but must also be familiar in the transfer and organisation of information and data on the Internet. Similarly, the PgDip in Computer Aided Building Design (CABD) at the University of Strathclyde addresses not only the conventional spread of CAD tools but also investigates the promise of collaborative design through on-line communications and the sharing of project data. This aspect of technology forms the core of the Internet & WWW Module within which the aim is to investigate the strengths and weaknesses of the Internet as a design communication medium and also to promote group working, peer learning and the development of students ICT and organisational skills, while also encouraging co-operative and collaborative working

Recommendations for the use of social network sites and mobile devices in a collaborative engineering design project

This paper investigates how mobile devices and online social networks are used in the context of a collaborative and cross-disciplinary distributed design project. The global design project is undertaken by students from four Universities in the collaboration of an aeroplane seatbelt product. It was observed that students have begun to make a change toward using social network sites and mobile devices for collaborative design and communication needs. This paper documents this change in student behavior and investigates the reasons for this change. Through structured and unstructured interviews, it was found that students have a natural preference towards the software they use for personal communication over prescribed unfamiliar software. Students in global teams are expected to be accessible at all times and mobile technology supports this need. In addition, students did not naturally adopt professional practices which lead to lost information and miscommunication. From these findings, a set of recommendations were created to assist those involved in a global design project

Using Slack for synchronous and asynchronous communication in a global design project

Innovations in technology and the growth of the global economy are changing the way companies work. With an increasing number of workers distributed across the world, the communication tools teams have traditionally used are transforming to suit these changes [1]. Design educators are aware of these changes and design students are responding by using communication tools familiar to them. This paper examines the use of the increasingly popular cloud-based team collaboration tool, Slack [2] in the context of a Global Design Project and assesses some of its benefits and drawbacks compared to other communication technologies available, including social media. Educators who seek to provide guidance for students, and students who seek to learn about tools that are increasingly being adopted by businesses that need to effectively communicate asynchronously will be interested in this assessment of Slack and this paper’s recommendations for its application in similar work

The use of social network sites in a global engineering design project

The global design project challenges students from three European universities to work in engineering design teams on the development of a product. To execute the design process, students have chosen to utilise social network sites as a platform for communication and collaboration. The aim of the study was to investigate how students were utilising social network sites as part of their collaborative work during the global design project and their views on the level of support given. A survey and semi-formal interviews were used to collect data on views and the use of social network sites. The study reveals: (1) the popularity of different social network sites for social and academic tasks, (2) the expectation of support students' and academics' think is required, and (3) a need for greater guidance in the use of social network sites. The use of social network sites by students' is discussed with a focus on how they can be better supported in future projects. This paper proposes that students' and academic staff require guidance on the best practices for using social network sites in global design projects to support students' education

Detailed empirical studies of student information storing in the context of distributed design team-based project work

This paper presents the findings of six empirical case studies investigating the information stored by engineering design students in distributed team-based Global Design Projects. The aim is to understand better how students store distributed design information in order to prepare them for work in today‟s international and global context. This paper outlines the descriptive element of the work, the qualitative and quantitative research methods used and the results. It discusses the issues around the emergent themes of information storing; information storing systems; information storing patterns; and information strategy, making recommendations; establishing that there is a need for more prescriptive measures to supporting distributed design information management. This work will be of great value to industry also

Online Course Design Using Iterative Workshops on Computer-Supported Collaborative Design for Engineering Design Students

Based on observations of global design classes at different institutions, students selected technologies without justification for the suitability of the technology to support their collaborative design activities. To best support students in their collaborative endeavours, a short online course in computer-supported collaborative design was developed. The process of the creation of the short online course was unique using students’ identification of their gaps in knowledge during workshops, iteratively over three years to develop a complete educational experience.  Workshops were conducted with students to identify gaps in students’ knowledge that were addressed at future workshops, by filling these gaps and conducting the same gap finding activity the researchers can identify if these gaps can be filled through an educational intervention. Surveys were used to evaluate the success of the development of an online course in Computer-Supported Collaborative Design (CSCD).  The method for the development of the short online course was logical and successful based on feedback from students during surveys. The outcomes of this method can have implications for those developing novel courses in familiar teaching environments or new digital media. This research has identified the interventions required to prepare students for global design projects in a novel way. Lessons from this research will support other educators to consider their course development practice. &nbsp