Abstract
Although industrial design use in small companies has been discussed more frequently in the literature in the past few years, very little research has been specifically done on the wood industry. This article presents a study of design use in small wood manufacturing companies in the northeast region of Sweden. Qualitative empirical data was collected from nine wood manufacturing companies using a structured questionnaire combined with a series of semi-structured interviews. The results indicate that industrial design is important for increasing competitiveness in small wood manufacturing companies. The firms that had invested in design found that it was of vital importance for business success. The general knowledge of design and commercial outcome of investments were, however, limited, and in several cases project management was experienced as difficult to cope with. Thus there is a need for enhancing design awareness and providing training in design management.
Citation
Ekberg, K. (2004) The Importance of Industrial Design for Small Wood Manufacturing Companies - An Analysis From the Manufacturers' Perspective., in Redmond, J., Durling, D. and de Bono, A (eds.), Futureground - DRS International Conference 2004, 17-21 November, Melbourne, Australia. https://dl.designresearchsociety.org/drs-conference-papers/drs2004/researchpapers/71
The Importance of Industrial Design for Small Wood Manufacturing Companies - An Analysis From the Manufacturers' Perspective.
Although industrial design use in small companies has been discussed more frequently in the literature in the past few years, very little research has been specifically done on the wood industry. This article presents a study of design use in small wood manufacturing companies in the northeast region of Sweden. Qualitative empirical data was collected from nine wood manufacturing companies using a structured questionnaire combined with a series of semi-structured interviews. The results indicate that industrial design is important for increasing competitiveness in small wood manufacturing companies. The firms that had invested in design found that it was of vital importance for business success. The general knowledge of design and commercial outcome of investments were, however, limited, and in several cases project management was experienced as difficult to cope with. Thus there is a need for enhancing design awareness and providing training in design management.