design clinic scheme for msme

Two years of rigorous courses boiled down to a peripatetic project with arduous creative persistence, hectic schedules and severe physical and mental exhaustion. Yet, the journey through the project became relatively comfortable owing to the Design Clinic Scheme for MSME.

Had it not been for the Design Clinic Scheme initiated by the Government of India and National Institute of Design, my diploma project would have lacked the two most vital impetuses that helped me finish it. The primary being, the funding, which stood as the framework based on which I could crystallize my ideas into reality. Secondly, the scheme that acted as a laboratory where I could experiment with my concepts without hesitation to yield better results.

I would like to thank the Ministry of MSME, Government of India and National Institute of Design to fabricate this scheme and create such a strong foundation for young designer like us, motivate our creativity and enhance our competence as a novice.

design brief

Catering to the modern day needs of a fast urban lifestyle and lack of space, this project aims at designing convertible furniture for the young, working crowd falling under the middle-upper middle-income groups. This project looks at designing furniture that will not only be compact and multi- functional, but will also focus on the portability and ease of handling. The concept will develop to understand the importance of the products’ functionality and maintaining its aesthetic value, while making it feasible for modern living and enhancing comfort.

The project intends to meet the requirements of these young individuals. Identifying their needs and studying their lifestyle would be the integral part of the project research. The difficulties faced, such as cramped rooms, less storage, overcrowding of furniture reducing floor space for other activities, rooms used for multiple purposes, high rate of square-footage-per-person, clutter, compromise on style and comfort, among other issues will also be analysed. With a constraint in space, the demand for flexible, space-saving and multi- purpose furniture has increased in the market making it a wise buy.

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Primary and Secondary Research:Research on the lifestyle of the user group in urban areas.Conducting case studies.Understanding their needs in small homes.Recognizing their difficulties with their existing furniture and space.Studying consumer buying behaviour such as customer requirements, budget.Identifying scenarios where the designed products would be used efficiently.Look at available products and create better and functional designs.Exploring existing mechanisms and joinery that would help the design to be more functional.Study about materials and hardware and list down the ones that can make the design more efficient and resourceful.

Conceptualisation and Experimentation:Brainstorm, ideate and conceptualise designs focusing on the functional and aesthetic value.Create models to understand the working of the joinery, behaviour of the materials, ergonomics and form of the product.

Prototyping and Documentation:Refining the prototype and making the necessary changes on the basis of function and feedback from experts and users.Final prototype.Documentation of the learning and outcomes from the project.

project methodology

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Research on existing studio and small apartments across the country to gain better knowledge about space layouts, the upcoming trends and current market scenario in apartments, the various possibilities and constraints.

301 sq.ft.

516-640 sq.ft.

Richmond Road, Bangalore

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division of space according to furniture and activities

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Therefore, the most utilised furniture for common activities are:sofa, bed, storage, study table/ coffee table/ dining table, seating

The process moved on to narrowing down on the area of work in terms of space utilization in a residence. Thus the most utilised area in a house was observed to be the living, dining and bedroom space.The furniture was also categorised based on its multitasking ability and the common activities they are used for.

model making

A model was created to understand the movement, ergonomics and the aesthetics of the piece. It was observed that the wardrobe depth is too less and it needn’t come with the whole unit. It can be bought separetely as it is not contributing to much space reduction.

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After comparison, it is observed that:

- The products provides lot of floor space while shut and even when open.

- Various needs like storage, work, sitting and sleeping is fulfilled within the same unit, there is ample area to put in other furniture

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material and hardware

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Cabinet Stay for the study table to open

Telescopic channel for the bed to move out

Gas springs for the top cabinets

Gas springs for the bed mechanism

Materials used:Pre laminate particle boardPly wood boardSS Rectangle pipes for the legs

assembly of the three units

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