Abstract
The unpredictable nature of manufacturing products from vitreous china results in the sanity ware industry employing a prototype-based, trial-and-error process for the development of its product lines. These technological circumstances present opportunities to use project specific or one-off designs to develop innovations that may then flow back into the industry at large. Such developments may take one of two forms: (1) stylistic, aesthetic based innovation aimed at integrating the sanity ware into the style of the building project, and (2) architecture-autonomous technological innovation, not dependent on specific projects for stimulus and more on the manufacturers’ ongoing in-house developments and industry regulation changes. This paper uses the current renovation of the Sydney Opera House as an opportunity to investigate the evolution of development strategies in the sanity ware industry in Australia, and the changing relationship between building design, industrial design and product manufacturing. Technical documents, focused interviews and industrial statistics are used to analyze the design of the original toilet bowls in the Sydney Opera House, evaluate its success, and explain the reasons for its eventual substitution with a product-based rather than project-based item. The evolution of Fowler, the company responsible for the manufacture and supply of sanity ware to the Sydney Opera House, is deemed an important factor in the change of direction. The conclusions of the paper show that, whilst successful market penetration may still benefit from some form of association between specific products and specific buildings, technological development cannot afford to impinge upon individual architectural opportunities. When it comes to industrial design, buildings function as innovation test beds (and marketing opportunities) rather than innovation seeds.
Citation
Martel, A., and Tombesi, P. (2004) Vessels of Expression and Flows of Innovation: Some Reflections on the Relationship Between Toilet Design and Building Design., 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/76
Vessels of Expression and Flows of Innovation: Some Reflections on the Relationship Between Toilet Design and Building Design.
The unpredictable nature of manufacturing products from vitreous china results in the sanity ware industry employing a prototype-based, trial-and-error process for the development of its product lines. These technological circumstances present opportunities to use project specific or one-off designs to develop innovations that may then flow back into the industry at large. Such developments may take one of two forms: (1) stylistic, aesthetic based innovation aimed at integrating the sanity ware into the style of the building project, and (2) architecture-autonomous technological innovation, not dependent on specific projects for stimulus and more on the manufacturers’ ongoing in-house developments and industry regulation changes. This paper uses the current renovation of the Sydney Opera House as an opportunity to investigate the evolution of development strategies in the sanity ware industry in Australia, and the changing relationship between building design, industrial design and product manufacturing. Technical documents, focused interviews and industrial statistics are used to analyze the design of the original toilet bowls in the Sydney Opera House, evaluate its success, and explain the reasons for its eventual substitution with a product-based rather than project-based item. The evolution of Fowler, the company responsible for the manufacture and supply of sanity ware to the Sydney Opera House, is deemed an important factor in the change of direction. The conclusions of the paper show that, whilst successful market penetration may still benefit from some form of association between specific products and specific buildings, technological development cannot afford to impinge upon individual architectural opportunities. When it comes to industrial design, buildings function as innovation test beds (and marketing opportunities) rather than innovation seeds.