The total design model illustrated in Figures 1.

7
and 1.9 was originally proposed some years ago
(1985). Since then the ethos of design has developed
to include the design of products for total life
recycling. This means that the end of a product
should be considered at the design stage. When
the product finally fails or is deliberately scheduled
for withdrawal, consideration should be
given to its disposal or recycling. For instance, are
there any environmentally threatening aspects
that must be dealt with? Some automotive companies,
for example, have developed recycling
policies whereby approaching 100 per cent of an
old exchanged vehicle is recycled. This has the
added benefit of giving the company the opportunity
to sell a new product to the customer.
Although the total design model has been
adopted for this course, other models have been
developed.The reader is recommended to review
the models proposed by Pahl and Beitz (1996),
March (1976) and Cross (2000). For example,
in the total design model the conceptual design
phase includes the development of bulk concepts
as well as the process of providing form and layout
to the design. The model presented by Pahl
and Beitz (1996) models this process as distinct
conceptual and embodiment phases. In the
embodiment phase the layout and form of the
design concept are quantified with consideration
of the overall objectives of the specification.The
subject of design has been practised for thousands
of years but understanding of the process of
design is in its infancy and all these models will
no doubt be developed further in the future.
References and sources of
information
Books and papers
Baxter, M. (1995). Product Design. Chapman and Hall.
Boothroyd, G. (1997). Design for manufacture and
assembly, in ASM Handbook, vol. 20. Material Selection
and Design.ASM International, pp. 676–686.
Cross, N. (2000). Engineering Design Methods. Strategies
for Product Design, 3rd edn.Wiley.
Ion, B. and Smith, D. (1996). The Conceptual Design
Phase. SEED.
Manzini, E. (1989). The Material of Invention. Design
Council.
March, L.J. (1976). The Architecture of Form. Cambridge
University Press.
Matthews,C. (1998). Case Studies in Engineering Design.
Arnold.
McMahon, C. (1997). Private communication.
University of Bristol.
Pahl, G. and Beitz, W. (1996). Engineering Design a
Systematic Approach, 2nd edn. Springer.
Pugh, S. (1990). Total Design.Addison Wesley.
Sharing Experience in Engineering Design. (1985).
Curriculum for Design. Engineering Undergraduate
Courses. SEED.
Walker, D.J., Dagger, B.K.J. and Roy, R. (1991).
Creative Techniques in Product and Engineering Design.
Woodhead Publishing Ltd.
Wright, I.C. (1998). Design Methods in Engineering and
Product Design. McGraw Hill.