Conceptual Design in Metalworking Microenterprises: An Empirical Study in Tanzania

Opiyo, Eliab Z.; Jagtap, Santosh; Keshwani, Sonal

doi:10.1017/pds.2022.252

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…The knowledge of how informal metalworking microenterprises in developing countries develop products is very scarce (Opiyo et al, 2022(Opiyo et al, , 2023. This work contributes to the efforts aimed at filling this gap in this knowledge.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Studying the Design Process in Constrained Environment: An Empirical Approach to Analyzing Informal Metal Working Enterprises in Tanzania

2023

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Product design is one of the key features of intellectual and creative abilities of humans. Activities of product design have attracted not only experts, but also those without any design training. Many people - working in metalworking microenterprises in the informal sector of developing countries - engage in the activities of designing and manufacturing products. However, since extant design research is mainly undertaken in developed countries, there is scarce knowledge about design activities in informal metalworking microenterprises in developing countries. This paper aims to address this issue by uncovering some aspects of design processes in such microenterprises. In particular, we explored: various product attributes that these microenterprises consider in designing products, the process steps they follow in requirements identification and solution generation, and resources (e.g., design methods, training, etc.) available to them. To explore these aspects, we conducted semi-structured interviews in 24 informal metalworking microenterprises in Tanzania. The findings have important implications for supporting their design activities.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Studying the Design Process in Constrained Environment: An Empirical Approach to Analyzing Informal Metal Working Enterprises in Tanzania

2023

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“…There is little knowledge about how informal metalworking microenterprises in developing countries elicit customer needs [38]. In this section, we present findings on how the designers in microenterprises elicit customer needs and how they formulate and organize the requirements-which form the first part of the research questions of this study.…”

Section: Identification Of Consumer Needsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is little knowledge about how informal metalworking microenterprises in developing countries elicit customer needs [38]. In this section, we present findings on how Interviews in all 24 microenterprises were administered by using the Swahili language and were audio-recorded.…”

Section: Identification Of Consumer Needsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conceptual Design in Informal Metalworking Microenterprises of Tanzania

2023

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Product design is a key aspect of human intelligence and creativity, attracting not only experts but also people without any formal design training. Although numerous people in developing countries design and manufacture products in metalworking microenterprises in the informal sector, there is still little knowledge about their design process. This paper aims to fill this gap in design knowledge. We aim to investigate the design processes in metalworking microenterprises in the informal sector of Tanzania. In particular, we aim to explore how these microenterprises identify consumer needs and requirements, how they determine the specifications for the product, how they generate and evaluate alternative product concepts, and how they define product details. To address these aims, semistructured interviews were carried out in metalworking microenterprises operating in the informal sector of Tanzania. The findings reveal many facets of their design processes, providing a sound basis upon which design methods and tools can be developed to support their design activities.

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Conceptual Design in Metalworking Microenterprises: An Empirical Study in Tanzania

Cited by 2 publications

References 17 publications

Studying the Design Process in Constrained Environment: An Empirical Approach to Analyzing Informal Metal Working Enterprises in Tanzania

Studying the Design Process in Constrained Environment: An Empirical Approach to Analyzing Informal Metal Working Enterprises in Tanzania

Conceptual Design in Informal Metalworking Microenterprises of Tanzania

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