Designers : The Key to Successful Product Development

This book contains the proceedings of the international symposium 'Designers-The Key to Successful Product Development' held in Darmstadt, Germany, December 1997. During this meeting exponents from different leading reserarch groups in engineering design came together to present and discuss their results.

Preface
Keynote

Section 1 : Design Research Methods
Thought and Design – Research Strategies, Single-Case Approach and Methods of Validation
Theoretical Approach in Design Methodology
Describing Design as A Reflective Practice : Observations on Schön’s Theory of Practice
An Overview of Descriptive Studies in Relation to A General Design Research Methodology
The Further Development of Design Methodologies
Résumé of Section 1

Section 2 : Individual Influences
Expert Designers
How Do Designers from Practice Design?
Having A Nose for good Solutions – The Development of Individual Strategies for The Design Process
Résumé of Section 2

Section 3 : Team Influences
Storytelling and Metaphor in The Engineering Design Process
A Framework for Instrumenting Design Teams
Forensic Analysis of The Engineering Design Process
Integration of Group, Individual and External Influences in The Design Process
Résumé of Section 3

Section 4 : Organisational Influences
The Development Department and Engineering Change Management
Innovating The Product Development Organisation
Planetary Organisation Offers Advantages in Project Work
Résumé of Section 4

Section 5 : Task and Process Variables
Design Thinking – Possible Ways to Successful Solutions in Product Development
Event Scales and Social Dimensions in Design Practice
Information Processing and Storage During The Design Process : The Use of A Flexible Information System
Information Management in The Design Process – Problems, Approaches and Solutions
Résumé of Section 5

Section 6 : Evaluation of Design Work and Its Result
A Model of Product Development Performance
Valuation of Design Concepts
Successful Industrial Product Development
Résumé of Section 6

Conclusion and Outlook