What is design

Design is everywhere. The single word 'design' encompasses an awful lot, and that is why the understandable search for a single definition leads to long debates at least. One definition, given by designer Richard Seymour is 'making things better for people'. Scientists can invent technologies, manufacturers can make products, engineers can make them function and marketers can sell them, but only designers can turn a concept into something that is desirable, viable, commercially successful and adds value to people's lives.

There are many misconceptions about design. Newspapers and magazines often use 'design' as a buzzword denoting style and fashion. The result is that design is restricted to the surface of things.

Good design begins with the needs of the user . Different designers use different methods - combining market research, user testing, prototyping and trend analysis. Emphasis on the customer makes design a formidable weapon for any business. Innovation in the form of design is the key to success.

The relationship between the designer and the organization or department that has commissioned the design work is crucial. The best relation­ships are a two-way street, where each party is receptive to the concerns of the other. Communication needs to be maintained throughout the design process.

They have to work with you and be a part of the business.

Innovation and invention

Design is about comparing alternatives to select the best possible solution. It is about exploring and experimenting. Innovation is the commercially successful exploitation of ideas. Innovation is the art of making new connections, and continuously challenging the status quo.

Successful innovation is first, and most importantly, about creating value. Innovation is generally associated with the following: the willingness to take risk, original thinking, the ability to inspire passion in others, perceive the world differently, see possibilities.

Good design can significantly add value to products, lead to growth in sales and enable both the exploitation of new markets and the consolidation of existing ones. In recent years the Design Council has paid particular attention to positioning design in the context of business and innovation. Innovation can usefully be viewed as being more about a certain frame of mind rather than a tangible product or a new technology.

In an innovative organization, innovation will not be the responsibility of everyone, and design will be a key facilitator in the organization's culture.

Envoromental design

The term environmental design means many different things to differ­ent people.The most difficult environmental design problems deal with the large-scale ecological impacts of the artificial world. It is believed that the best way to solve big environmental problems involves whole-systems design process. This requires tools like Structured Planning, and tools like Pattern languages to create integrated high-level solutions to en­vironmental problems.

The paradigm behind Structured Planning is based on the notion of 'form as a diagram of forces', an expression of 'form follows function’. Taking the lesson from the natural world, Structured Planning process helps to create forms that have a simple, elegant and functional beauty in order to achieve the kind of resolution, fitness, and equilibrium that biological forms have. The Structured Planning process usually begins with a goal statement or problem definition. After that the design team continues with a functional analysis of the problem space to be specific and informational. It allows to produce a functional model that includes all users of the system throughout its lifecycle in all its modes of operation.

One of the main principles of eco-design is work with the Sun.A fundamental principle of solar design is that it aims to maximize the solar gain in the winter and minimize it in the summer. To achieve this solar design combines three strategies - glazing, orientation, and thermal mass.

Another important principle of an eco-building is its self-sufficiency.

The more a house can meet its own needs, the less it demands from the environment and it becomes a true eco-house.