The user as designer

One distinct design trend in the 21st century is that the user is becoming much more involved in the design process, affecting the outcome. In a sense, the user is involved in designing the product according to his or her individual preferences.

Technology in the design process

Design processes have undergone a radical change from the 20th to the 21st century. The use of computers and digital technology has revolutionised the design and the production methods as well as the underlying process. The implementation of CAD and CAM technologies (profes-
sional design programs) has been particularly influential. These programs have made it possible to reduce risks and eliminate limitations and expensive trial phases and made it simple to test visionary products before they are realised. In addition, the 3D technique rapid prototyping has helped change the design process and made it more efficient, as it is now possible to see whether a given product works on a much earlier stage in the development phase.

New materials and smart design

One key trend in the new century is the desire to use new materials in design solutions and to use familiar materials in new contexts. This interest in materials springs from the crucial need to optimise and solve today’s resource shortages and an awareness of the need to use our remaining resources as efficiently as possible.

Nature

Nature has once again become a main source of inspiration and direction for design. Designers learn from nature and focus on organic shapes but in a different way than in the past. Technology has enabled access to new areas of nature. Today, we can study micro organisms and bacterial structures, and that provides a new source of inspiration and aesthetics for designers to draw on.

Social design and care design

The population pyramid has changed shape. The working-age group is shrinking compared to the group of people of retirement age. In addition, there is the large segment of the so-called weak – particularly in the 3rd world. Thus, social design and care design will be big and important design areas in the future, because the solutions will seek to strengthen the health care sector and improve conditions in the 3rd world and for underprivileged people in general. Parameters such as increased dependency, quality of life and dignity are crucial elements in solutions relating to social design and care design.

Green design

Taking responsibility for the world and for the environment is an increasingly crucial design trend for our century. Sustainability and cradle-to-cradle thinking are important to most companies and have become a key competitive parameter in the development of new products. Thinking green is no longer the exclusive domain of pioneers but a parameter that designers and manufacturers have to address, because the consumers demand products that respect the environment and ethical principles.

Art design

Art design and ‘Limited editions’ will we be seeing more of because many of the consumers want something unique rather than a mass-produced design. Art and design interact because today’s technology makes it possible to produce solutions as one-offs. The mass markets will continue to exist, but it has become obvious that the design profession is increasingly moving into a domain that previously belonged to crafts and arts. Important features of art design are its critical stance to consumer society and the use of design to provoke debates and challenge assumptions about what it means to be a designer.

Emotional design

More than ever, we are controlled by emotions and experiences, and this is a trend that will become increasingly apparent in society and in future design solutions. Increasingly, consumers seek to create an emotional and experiential relationship with the individual design solution, which often enhances the longevity of these products and services. Thus, in a sense, it is the individual perspective that determines whether a relationship and an experience are established between the user and the design solution – and thus whether an emotional design is achieved.

Replacement due to changing fashions

The changes that characterise the fashion industry have also come to characterise other industries in the 21st century. This is due to a greater need for a carefully crafted self-projection, and in that connection design can be an identity-building feature that indirectly tells the world who you are. Design products are replaced in order to help consumers maintain the right appearance.

Service and concept design

Service and concept design is a holistic design approach striving to embed all the interfaces between user and provider in a context that optimises services and the brand. Service and concept design includes the design of material products as well as immaterial services and may affect a wide range of areas including communication, surroundings and behaviour.