Lota Agua

The project will be focused on a low tech shower and bath with the reuse of grey water for gardens and green space for Lotina communities living on illegal land with no potable water, where the full use cycle is taken into account.

When researching the temporary housing, every interviewee mentioned that their primary issue is water. The issues related to water are mostly political ones, however what the people of Lota in temporary housing need is a reliable system now, not in decades if the political situation is ever resolved. After all water is a basic need for survival.

Currently, there is no running water and transportation, storage and pouring is accomplished through the use of buckets. In some houses, water is stored in large garbage cans. Such communities have no managed method of water disposal and often grey water is poured to a body of water surrounding them. Others wash their bodies, clothes or dishes by the river with toxic chemicals. Most of the housing in illegal land have difficulty washing themselves as there is no running water.

There is opportunity for a personal and possibly communal washing space since the biggest problem is the act of washing and since is no designated space for the disposal of used water, a possible garden. Infact this all can be part of the same system. Currently in the community, buckets are used in order to store, trasport and use as a tool for pouring.

Although many were relocated and the municipality provided materials for housing and some help with plumbing, many people due to delayed allocation of land moved to illegal land where they made their own houses with the supplies given to them. These communities remain with no running water and have simple temporary housing, with temporary bathrooms, no showers and sometimes no stoves. Many still wash their clothes in the body of water nearby and others dispose their water in the dirt pathways around the house where greywater sits and can be more contaminated. I went to several temporary housing communities. The one that made me realize design can be a solution to is temporary housing number one and two. Even when i asked the communities, where do you throw the water you use, they kind of put their head down and said that in the nearby water or road. Infact in the Lota charrette at DUOCUC the residents of lota were very concerned about this issue.

Finally, when i went to the Toronto Charette in November, ironically I had the chance to work with the water group and we designed emergency shipping containers that could serve a need, in this case water. We worked on this project for days and every day at 5:00pm we talked to experts in Water, Industrial Design, Architecture and Development. And what I came to realize is that although basic needs are very important, sometimes design is about added value, its about dignity and about social and psychological aspects. Many of Lotina's needs are met but the in the most crude and uncomfortable way. They CAN wash themselves, they CAN get water to drink but it is not something they look forward to. I want to design a scenario where you look forward to doing the activity.

Imagine:

warm water falls from your shoulders, run down your body slowly, you breathe in, you can feel the warm air, the steam of it all, makes your body relax. As you sit and ponder about the day and the people you are around, you take in slowly the most incredible, indescribable aroma of lavender and herbs that you are softly stepping on. You are sitting in a space where you can gaze in to the ocean, its endless.

As the water drips down your face, down to your chest, to your legs , knees, feet, it finally reaches the ground... now the soil is drinking it in, thirst is replenished and the water runs down travels slowly through the soil, filling every hole where thirst made a home.

This is what I want. I want to create an experience that is much beyond meeting a basic need, because sometimes thats dignity, pride, and a sense of self.

Chile Recicla

Yanira Moncada is currently working on an environmental project, and has sent me a link to the Triple Bottom Line being developed in Chile. The "Santiago Recycle" is an initiative that aims to raise awareness about the importance of recycling in the metropolitan area and nationally.

Temporary housing in Lota

Here is a video of a gentleman, who has kindly invited us into his home. This is a typical temporary house, which he built himself following the earthquake. It is so cramped, that most of the things have to be stored outside. The blue bin that you see in the kitchen is a typical container, which is used for storing water, fuel and garbage. Things that should not be compatible. Since HIMCE trucks are not able to go down the roads in these neighbourhoods, he has to transport this giant blue container uphill to one of the main roads.

Phase 2 : Alëna's Summary

The title of my project is Lota Verde. It means Green Lota. And Green Lota means a step into sustainability of waste management system that integrates waste re-use and recycling strategies, while engaging the community and improving the economy of the city.

Solid waste collection and disposal in Chile are the responsibility of municipal governments. Lota was able to secure a contract with empresa HIMCE in 2008 for the removal of solid waste and its transportation to Coronel landfill 12.5 km from the city.

Additionally, a number of people - chatarerros - make their living in the informal waste recycling sector. The groups involved include door-to-door collectors, street scavengers, traders and dealers in waste materials. Such recycling activities are not well integrated into the solid waste collection and disposal system in Lota.

One of the major problems in Lota's solid waste sector is that many tons of solid waste collected are improperly disposed of in open dumps that do not meet sanitary standards. In addition, there seems to be little active management over what is dumped, how it is treated, and what fees are collected.

Some of the social costs associated with improper waste disposal include contamination of both surface and ground water, spread of disease, and uncontrolled population of stray animals.

In Lota, the high standard quarters and average standard quarters benefit from house-to-house garbage collection. However, this service is relatively low or non-existent in temporary housing quarters. MSW management is malfunctioning, because of the lack of paved roads - HIMCE trucks are simply not able to reach these dwellings.

The final convincing point was a visit to a local middle school escuela Adventista, where Sam and I along with Miki and Cote (IwB and Duoc students) conducted several exercises. One of which drew from Lorenzo Imbesi idea of a perfect city. The question that we asked during one of the exercises was “What is your ideal city?”. Children filled a sheet of paper with many wonderful features of Lota, including its beautiful parks, and beaches. However, about half of the paper featured phrase “sin basura”, which means “without garbage”. Children, which are supposed to be the future of the city, are concerned with the amount of poorly treated waste on the streets of their city.



The scope of this project allows me to address the design of a waste management container that will be used for transporting sorted solid waste to a neighbourhood transfer station. Further sorting and recycling/reusing operations could be carried out by chatarerros, thus, incorporating informal waste picking within a formal waste management sector. The transfer station will not be addressed to the same extent and detail as the container. However, it is recognized as a key component of a suggested WM system in Lota. Without such transfer station, the waste container will be ineffective.

The development of an artifact to fit within the system will be guided by three design principles.

• Scale and configuration of device should take up minimum space in the home of the resident of Lota.
• When the device is engaged, it should promote recycling , re-use, and proper management of waste, while being comfortable and safe to use.
• The device must be integrated int a natural topography and underdeveloped road system of Lota.
• Quality and comprehensiveness of visual appearance and function of device is vital. Functioning components, such as handles, lids, hinges, etc. should receive careful consideration.

Lota faces the same challenges as many other cities with stagnant economies in terms of poor infrastructure, high prevalence of the informal sector, and poor public awareness on safe domestic waste management techniques. Public awareness is needed, but this could be useless if the community is not actively participating in the process.

The construction of transfer stations would be a good solution to reduce distances between households and waste collection sites. Appropriate waste container for recyclables and other types of solid waste would be complimentary to the proposed station.

Phase 2: Rahim's Summary

The purpose of this project is to design a toilet to aid individuals who lack basic sanitation needs. The focus will be on providing better sanitation methods to individuals living in temporary housing areas, as well as those trying to recover from a natural disaster, both of which do not have basic bathroom facilities. Many countries right now, following a natural disaster are having huge sanitation, for example Haiti right now has a huge Cholera breakout do to waste contaminating with drinking water.

The family above was the reason why I decided to focus my thesis on toilets.This family uses buckets to go to the bathroom. I learned that the night before, the gentleman was discarding his waste in a nearby forest where the man was stopped by the police and was given a warning. There are many individuals, just like this couple who are not associated with a temporary housing community, and therefore lack basic sanitation needs and a proper structure for discarding waste.

Lota currently has 3 main options to go to the bathroom. The first one is chemical toilets.Chemical toilets pose many threats to users. Some individuals interviewed experienced severe illnesses while using the chemical bathrooms. Other disadvantages for the use of chemical toilets is that they tend to carry foul odours, too many people end up sharing a chemical bathroom, and individuals end up throwing their garbage into the chemical bathrooms as well.

The next option are shipping containers turned into bathrooms. During a natural disaster, aid is usually sent via shipping containers, which are typically 20 feet in length. In Lota, the municipality transformed these shipping containers into bathrooms with a fully functioning shower system and toilet. There are 4 stalls on each side, each being 3.5 feet in width and approximately 3 feet in depth. Each stall is shared by two households and is secured with a key lock.

The last option are buckets. Individuals that live in temporary housing that do not belong to a community tend to have it a bit more difficult due to the fact that they don’t have the opportunity to share facilities. These individuals are focused to discard their waste in unauthorized areas, due to the fact of not having proper sanitation needs.

Existing Products:

Concept 1 deals with a toilet design that is a flat pack and can easily be snapped together. This concept features a biodegradable bag, which allows the user to put their waste in the bag, and then dispose the bag to a nearby compost bin. This concept ensures that the bag can easily be throw into the compost therefor the waste not coming in contamination with the user or with nearby water supplies.

Phase 2: Sam's Summary

The purpose of my project is to design a landmark or image-based method of navigation for the city of Lota that connects its existing tourist attractions in a way that is easy to comprehend. Lota is a city rich in beauty and history, with a number of existing points of interest throughout the community. Currently, there it is quite difficult for an outsider to guide themselves from one point to the next. As Lota develops into a tourist destination a system of navigation will become increasingly important.

The trip to Lota was invaluable. The knowledge that the group gained from spending a week with the Lotinos, being immersed in their culture helped everyone to solidify their project directions. I was doing research with the community group while we were there. This meant spending a large amount of my time meeting members of the community, interviewing them, and learning about their day-to-day life. There were two experiences in Lota that helped me find my project direction. The first, was getting lost with my group when we were trying to meet up with a man that we were meant to interview. Though Lota has some signage, it's very limited, and in that case of the area we were in: there was none to be found. The group had to ask directions from the office staff at an elementary school we were walking past. Once we began to walk again, the gentleman we were supposed to meet came along and said he had been looking for us. Had he not come along, I don't think we ever would have found him.

The second experience that convinced me to explore wayfinding, was an interview that was conducted with a lady from the market. She was given the pen and paper and asked to draw a map depicting how she finds her way to and from work each day. She did not want to draw the map and continually attempted to hand the pen back. It was not a reluctance to share her story that held her back but rather an unfamiliarity with writing and drawing. Through the verbal interview with her she gave us directions for the hour and a half walk she does every day to and from work. But she didn't give street names when describing her journey. She gave landmarks.

Both of these experiences indicated to me that wayfinding for this city would be an interesting challenge. The three preliminary concepts I have been exploring have to do with further exploring the idea of landmark wayfinding.

Concept one is a city map that visually depicts images of what the user would see around the city. Being able to connect a building you're standing in front of with an image of the same building on a map will hopefully prove to be a simple way of orienting oneself.
Concept two is a site marker that uses the idea of place making to help the user guide themselves. When a user sees a branded sign or area within the city, they will know that they have arrived at a point of interest. The site marker could also display information or a historical background on a given attraction.
Concept three is a path marker. This could be in the form of a medallion that might be inset into the sidewalk or path. The user would follow these "breadcrumbs" from tourist site to tourist site.

Phase Two: Rachel's Summary

The visit to Lota, made us fully understand the natural beauty and potential that this town has to becoming a prosperous place. While we noticed many positive aspects, that pictures and research could have never fully explained, we also noticed many elements of Lota that must be improved if they wish to full recover from both their mine closing, and the recent earthquake.

While in Lota, I was placed on team economy. Team economy was to look for possible new economic activity for the town. We were specifically asked to focus on Lota’s potential for tourism. Three main areas were identified: the mine, the market, and the fisheries.

The market was of great interest to me. The people of the market were extremely warm and welcoming. They wanted more then anything to genuinely help us as much as they could, in finding the information that we were seeking. After extensive documentation, and interviews we arrived at the conclusion that the infrastructure of the market did not match the spirit of the people within the market. This is where my design opportunity lay. The goal of my design is to give a higher quality of life for those working, and shopping within the market.

Currently the market streets are lined with piles of trash. This trash is not only unhealthy, and encourages the spread of illnesses on the market, but it is a big deterrent for tourists to come to the market. The trash is both unsightly and extremely smelly. At the moment the waste is left on the streets until a worker with a wheel-barrow comes to collect it where it eventually ends up in a dump.

I believe that composting is a realistic long-term goal that would solve many of Lota’s market problems. Composting is a sustainable practice than can create new jobs, and effectively turn the waste in to a new product the market could sell, instead of remaining a burden.

My three concepts are designed with the long-term goal of composting in mind. It is also designed with the short-term goal of hiding the waste’s and unsightliness and smell from the consumers in the market area. The first concept is a bin that the vendors can directly place their waste in to, and remain until the waste collectors, collect the waste. The second concept is designed to replace the piles of waste in the streets. It is friendly enough for tourists to use, and functional and large enough for the vendors to use. The third concept also replaces the large piles left in the streets. It is an onsite worm composter. This eliminates the need for transportation, and implements the idea of composting right away.

Phase 2: Lota Feria Fish Stall - Jane's Summary

The trip to Lota, Chile had a profound effect on the direction of the project, understanding of the needs of the people and municipality, and has inspired progress in a unique direction for each member of the group.

My efforts will be focused on the fish vendors in the Lota market. While in Lota we spent a relatively long time photo documenting the market streetscape (examples below), interviewing vendors, and getting a sense of the pride, vibrance, warmth and resilience displayed by the Lotinos who work there. We identified the market as the future of Lota’s tourist based economy. Not only does it already attract a small number of visitors, but it could become a stronger attraction through offering traditional Chilean crafts and foods that would appeal to tourists, more resting areas, cleaning up waste out of sight, and organizing stalls into sections where similar goods are sold. It offers the greatest opportunity for new entrepreneurs to start small businesses, as well as space for small businesses to work together to become larger.

With this in mind I’m focused on designing an improved fish stall that will replace the fish displays made of a wheelbarrow and plywood that are currently being used in some areas. The aim is to improve the ergonomics of the workstation for the vendor, make it more appealing to the buyers and tourists, and start a ripple effect of improvements throughout the market. These small fish stands could be feasibly changed for a relatively low cost with minimal disruption to the vendors. Small improvements in one area hopefully cause the market management and municipality to consider the positive effects of other improvements to this critical area of the city’s economy.

The concepts developed attempt to achieve these goals in slightly different manners, with varying degrees of success.  Considerations to size, material, cost, construction, and aesthetics have been made in each. It’s likely that the final concept will combine elements from all of them as well as other features that have not yet been addressed.

Through our collaboration with the Institute Without Boundaries the projects developed by the Carleton group will fit into a larger system plan for the holistic revitalization of Lota.

In the coming weeks the concept will be further refined, taking into account the feedback received from the presentations made when this material was presented.

Yasaman's Summary

Some thoughts:

As a result of the termination of the coal industry, the government of Lota is interested in tourism as an industry to potentially revitalize the economy. However the rapid growth of tourism on large scale in some countries in the region has been a significant agent of these, not all very welcome, changes. As in most developing countries of the world, tourism in many Asian countries is also conceived as a powerful means of attracting the coveted foreign exchange and an easy means of boosting the national economy. It brings investment, creates jobs, and promotes sales of crafts and local artifacts, etc. Accordingly the cultural heritage sites, performing arts, crafts and natural resources have all been exploited in attracting tourists. This approach has the danger of reducing cultural heritage and the environmental assets to an economic commodity, minimizing or sometimes completely ignoring their socio-cultural values.

The large number of tourists with different backgrounds have contributed to historic monuments and the location of tourist facilities within cultural heritage sites have too often resulted in alteration of the original features in all kinds of pollution damaging or even destroying the very fabric of the heritage.

Tourism, viewed from another perspective, however, effects attitudes, alters popular beliefs, changes mentalities and spreads new concepts relating to work, money, and human relationships. It brings people of different cultures together,provides a direct contact between them offering an opportunity for friendly and peaceful dialogue leading to better understanding between people and nations.

My focus:

I am interested in tourism and practices in sustainable tourism for the town of Lota. Sustainable tourism is not “Eco- Tourism” and although it will consider environmental equity, it will focus on the cultural sustainability. I would like to consider this fact and further develop ideas about sustainable tourism and whether it will work. I am interested in a type of tourism that is not simply for economic development, but rather focuses on cultural sustainability.

Sustainable tourism practices should take in to account that locals know best and should promote an upscale methodology where the management of tourist locations is by locals and more concisely, the community. In this way, the citizens have more power as to what they would like in their culture to be presented, and what to incorporate as activities with the tourists. I am interested in the connection of the sites and the way in which people in the city, not only tourists per ce, move about to get from one destination to the next. Currently I will write about tourism and research this area knowing that going to Lota I will be a tourist myself and perhaps make this in to a dialogue.

Last words:

Although I was thinking about tourism, once I received the groups that IWB had created, I became interested more in the idea of “place”. This is very interesting to me, where people go, how they move about the city, which areas of the city are the hubs, the architecture of the city and how it incorporates this transportation and movement.

Having said this, I am also interested in how people communicate with one another, the technologies they use, the locations they perform such tasks and how they move about the city in order to communicate.

Phase 1: Rachel's Summary

Going to Lota, Chile will be a necessary step to discovering the needs, wants, and desires of the Lotinas. Understanding the Lotina’s lives will be a crucial part for the recovery process to be a success. The design that is eventually conceived must come from the Lotina’s point of view, not that of an outsider. While there I plan to be open to any opportunity that may present it self. I will immerse myself in the Lota culture, and try to look at their situation in as many perspectives as possible.

I do not want to go in to Lota with any preconceived ideas, but it is important to have a reference frame, to view the situation. For this reason I will be keeping the idea of local art in mind while collecting research. I am interested in the current art scene, and the future desires of the local artist. Do the artists want a gallery? A market? A public space? Or nothing at all? I seek to have these questions answered during the research visit. During my visit to Lota I will talk to local artists such as, Eduardo Cartes Cardenas, a sculpture who uses coal as his medium. I am also interested in looking at plausible spaces that could be used as a point of interest for interaction between potential tourist and the artists.

Rahim's Summary

Disaster Relief:

While considering the complexity of earthquake relief/disaster relief, my hopes are to design a product that will aid the town of Lota and prepare the city in the case of a future natural disaster. Such a product, which may have the potential to aid a city such as Lota during devastating times, may also be able to aid other nations, should they also experience future devastating natural disasters. During my trip to the town of Lota, I hope to analyze how individuals are currently living as a result of being severely impacted by the earthquake. Understanding current living conditions as well as the specific needs of the population of Lota, will enable me to design a product that will not only meet those specific needs, but will also enable the population to be better prepared in the case that a disaster might strike again. I also hope to visit the current temporary shelters and evaluate the living conditions there as well, in order to look at basic hygiene and sanitary needs. In the case that I am not able to come up with such a product, I hope to focus on the area of disaster preparedness, which is the education that is provided in order to strengthen and prepare individuals in the case of a future disaster.

Phase 1: Sam's Summary

In response to the need for an economic refocus, and the existing opportunity to generate local tourism, I hope to concentrate my research on existing public spaces, tourist destinations, and the art community.
Lota has the potential to attract Chilean vacationers and, cultural and adventure travellers from around the world alike. This provides an excellent opportunity for the local artisans and crafts people to market their works and thereby, stimulate the local economy.
It also presents the opportunity for a beautifying of the urban landscape. This could be achieved through a new design for the local street furniture or a community art project. While in Lota, I hope to find inspiration in the culture and the underground community of graffiti artists and the ever-changing nature of their medium.
Visiting Lota also provides an opportunity to conduct research and speak with the locals to understand the existing perception is of the city, what the users’ needs are, and what the Lotinos imagine or hope their city could become.
This information can be gathered by a number of different methodologies, including; behaviour observation captured through photographs, video, and annotated diagrams; Physical trace observations to explore how the existing public spaces are used and perceived; And structured interviews and diaries to understand more about the user group and their daily life.

Phase 1: Alëna's Summary

Lota has the means to be an ideal destination for cultural and adventure travellers. It has a number of existing attractions that hold historical importance, such as the “Chiflón del Diablo” (Wind of the Devil) which is one of the deepest coalmines in the world and the Chivilingo Hydroelectric Plant which is Chile’s oldest hydroelectric power station and was designed and built by Thomas Edison in 1897. Although Lota is home to a number of interesting tourist destinations and features a long stretch of beach front, there seems to be a disconnect between what the city has to offer and travellers’ perception of the city. I hope to explore this issue through a possible way finding system. Visual anthropology, artefacts, physical trace observations and hierarchical task analysis.

Phase 1: Jane's Summary

I’m personally interested in the public gathering areas of the town. During the trip I’m looking forward to observing people in the markets, public squares and walkways. I would like to investigate how a tourist would navigate the town, and see the monuments and attractions the locals deem intrinsic to their culture and identity. I have to do further research on current tourism statistics for the area such as the age range, distance travelled, and how long they expect to stay in the town on average.

One piece of information we’ve gotten from IwB is the main plaza is beautiful but empty. I’m curious about this under utilization of space, and would like to see if there are design opportunities that would invite people to spend time in the plaza. This could be through some sort of interactive feature, different street furniture, or possibly something that would be family friendly and encourage families to make the plaza a destination for fun. The plaza is a historical marker for the town, and would be of interest to tourists as well as locals interested in learning about the heritage of the area.

Through the research I did for our group report I’ve gained a greater understanding of the network of attractions required to hold the interest of a tourist. Navigation between the sites must be considered just as much as the sites themselves.

Phase 1: Group Summary

Lota is in the initial stages of refocusing their economy from an industrial economy, reliant on coal mining, to a service and tourism-based economy. This presents opportunity for industrial design to assist the town in this goal by giving the local stakeholders tools that will facilitate sustainable tourist development in the area.  Additional opportunities can be found in developing products that will assist the community rebuild after a natural disaster has occurred, such as the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that happened in February 2010.

The group is keen to get to Chile and explore the town and get a clear sense of the culture and heritage. By acknowledging that the group will be outsiders during the trip, some members have chosen to focus on the public spaces that will be of interest to tourists. Other members are keeping with the theme of tourism, but interested in investigating the role art plays in the community. Another opportunity has been identified in response to the issue of natural disaster, and hopes to deal with the basic needs of the citizens.

The research done leading up to the trip will enable each member of the group to see and identify their own design opportunity, as well as collect any relevant data in the brief time available. However, since the time is so limited, as much preparation as possible will be done before arrival in Lota. This includes making any materials required for data collection and analysis, such as creating journals, collage materials, and getting materials translated to Spanish.

Sketchbook Project

Sketchbooks on tour across The US. This is a collaborative art project from 1000s of people around the world:



http://arthousecoop.com/projects/sketchbookproject/?utm_source=designsponge&utm_medium=ad&utm_campaign=designsponge-ad

Nuevo Mundo Television

http://www.nuevomundotv.com/

POINTS OF INTEREST IN OUR RESEARCH AND WHAT WE SHOULD LOOK INTO

Points of interest in our Research and What we should look into

·               What’s the literacy rate?

·               Counselling: Women’s centre AND a men’s centre?

·               Community as builders and caretakers

·               Community outreach centres: laundry facilities, skate parks

·               Does Lota recycle?

·               Should we do something proactive when we get there?

·               Educational programs in place for trades/literacy?

·               How do you make them feel “at home” again?

·               Transportation of milk? Pasteurization

·               Preserving historical and cultural significance – tourists coming in for hiking/fishing/etc. “responsible tourism” and “adventure tourism”

·               What kind of activities will tourists like?

·               How do the first tourists orient themselves? Signage, street furniture? Beautifying public spaces, creating pride in their community.

·               Show your interest, don’t take photos and keep your face in your sketchbook the first day

·               If you feel you know best people will be offended or will feel like they’re receiving gifts. Empower them to make choices about their lives and create for themselves

Major Studio Notes 09/23/10

Major Studio Lecture – 09/23/10

·               Research report due in 2 weeks - You don’t need to have all the answers but you should have asked the questions

·               Designing from the inside-out: find the problem and design to solve it

·               Designing from the outside-in: A problem/focus is given to you

·               Social Trends: generational trends, political issues, family/work/activity patterns, health issues, look at patterns/repeated use

·               Economic: political issues, recession, users’ budget, employment rates, product cost (issue for later on)

·               Technology: competitive/comparative products – what are people in similar situations using now? (Comparative products aren’t necessarily geared toward the same market or end user, but may complete the same sort of task, or use similar technology or techniques.

·               When you combine social trends, economic issues, and technological issues you find a perspective product

·               Anthropologic research is trying to see through someone else’s eyes

·               How do you develop innovation? Make the familiar strange. Innovation is a link between two conventions: the one it replaces and the one it becomes. Identify your product opportunity gap

·               Develop an argument

·               Use positioning maps? Low/high style vs. low/high technology. Make it better than what already exists

·               Task analysis: what are the steps in completing a given activity?

·               Product function analysis tree: how does a product complete its task? What are all the things it has to do and how does it accomplish those things, what components does the product have that help to complete the task? First level of this tree - Toaster – cradle the toast, lower it into the toaster, heat up the toast, raise the toast when it’s toasted to an appropriate level.

·               Life cycle analysis: where does the product end up at every stage of its birth, use, and disposal? What are the issues at each step?

·               Value opportunity analysis: what are the product values that are important to a given user?

Deliverables – preliminary research report due 10/07/10

·               Succinct problem statement – your product opportunity gap

·               Clear project direction – what’s the activity?

·               Significant issues – objectives, target user groups, market demographics, market size; competitive/comparative product analysis, ongoing contacts with manufacturers, external experts, and current users.

·               Conclude with a set of design guidelines, outlining features, materials, components, technologies, technical criteria, anticipated measures or criteria for success.

·               Graphic layout, visuals, sketches, charts

·               Turabian style guide

·               Social, economic, technology, users.

·               Breakdown for research: who was it, who was it for, what happened, where, when, why, and how.

Design Brief

Format with team logo, title, one-liner “elevator pitch” (very top of your brief), general context (what do you know?), introduction, background, opportunity, challenge, problem, user focus, SET (social economic technology) factors, competitive landscape, design specs, measures for success, and evaluation criteria (the last two are going to be with you for the year, how else will you know if your design is successful?)

·               Problem Statement

·               Project Definition

·               Project Objectives

·               Target user groups – demographics – market size

·               Competitive product analysis

Destrucción Biblioteca Municipal de Lota

Video Conference and Meeting - Identifying Themes

Group: Lota Renovación + IWB
Agenda: Identify project themes, appropriate research methods, case study research
Location: 4th year studio + ID electronics lab
Date: September 16th, 2010
Starting and Ending Time: 12:30pm - 6:00pm

To narrow down our research, we have isolated several themes, based on:
Public vs Private and Physiological vs Community Actualization

• What are the daily rituals around meal preparation or personal hygiene?
• What are some meaningful places and artifacts in their homes?

Public Spaces. For example, Case Studies of different communities that were able to revitalize cultural centres and turn stagnant industries into artefacts and sources of knowledge. Potential cultural sites in Lota include:

• Teatro Lota
• El Chiflon del Diablo
• Hydroelectric Plant

Physiological. For example, Case studies of communities able to rebuild themselves after collapse of local industry or a natural catastrophe. Questions to ask:

• What is the potential for the development of a local industry on a national level?
• What are the issues of housing and meeting of basic needs, such as sanitation and food storage?

Community Actualization. For example, Case studies of communities able to rebrand themselves after collapse of local industry or a natural catastrophe. Questions to ask:

• What are potentials for attracting tourism to such communities? Art, Culture, Nature, Knowledge.
• How to instill pride into a community and stimulate participation? Sports, Unions.

Agenda:

Prepare a case study document for IWB group by Tuesday, September 21st.