Journal 09: Coleman Project

The past couple weeks of class have been spent working on the Coleman for the Home Design Project. The assignment was for Coleman to create a product for them to enter into the home goods market. We were assigned groups based on our cards we drew at the beginning of the quarter, and I was in a group with Becky, Jonathan and Lindsay.

The first class was spent defining Coleman, what their values are and who their customers are. We decided that Coleman is an outdoor goods company that produces quality products that are also environmentally friendly. Their customers are adventurous people who are also concerned with saving the environment.

We then started to think about some home goods products that Coleman would be interested in making. We came up with some of the following ideas:
o A lamp that used solar power as its source of electricity
o A coffee table that had an outlet on it powered by solar power
o A “power mat” that could wirelessly charge electronics that was powered by solar energy
o Coleman Fabrics that are able to heat, cool and power whatever was set on them
o A set of drapes that used the sun’s energy to wirelessly power an outlet

Overall, we wanted to go with the idea of using solar energy to help customers save money while also being environmentally conscious.

I would say my role in the team was the “naysayer.” As a team, we came up with some very creative ideas. I am an engineer so my mind was constantly thinking about how possible these ideas would be to make and how well they would function. There were some ideas that I think are really cool, but probably too futuristic for a product to be released soon. I think that overall, our product is a good idea that will be possible to make in the near future.

I think that my team worked really well together. We had a good balance of creative ideas but also ones that would be possible. Also, Jonathan was able to learn enough about Google Sketch-Up to create the kiosk model. Becky created the logo and packaging and Lindsay looked up information about the technology and created some informational slides.

I created the “plug box” on Google Sketch-Up (see below) and also made some sketches for the product logo and Coleman logo. Also, Lindsay and I worked on our Prezi, which was our presentation that we showed to the class.

I think that this was a good way to wrap up the quarter and get a preview as to the dynamics of working in a group on a design project. I think that our group worked really well together and we came up with a good idea for a product that Coleman customers would be interested in!