OVERVIEW
Context:
The Center for Digital Media (CDM) campus was built with design and software development in mind. Therefore, it does not have a dedicated space for physical prototyping. In the recent few years, there has been an increase in the number of industry projects which require digital designs to interface with physical elements. In response, the CDM hopes to expand its ability and capacity by designing and building a maker lab.
Challenges:
1. Overcoming physical site constraints.
2. Understanding user flow.
3. Designing a multi-purpose space.
Outcome:
77.8% of the users feel that the online booking system is very user-friendly. 83.3% of the users feel that the user flow in the make lab is very intuitive. 94.4% of the users express that the CDM maker lab meets their needs and they would like to use it. When asked users to use 3 words to describe the maker lab experience. The most common words are "well-organized", "intuitive", and "creative".
My Role:
Project Manager/UX designer
- Project management
- User research
- Design User flow
- User Test
Client:
The Center for Digital Media, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Project Timeline:
A 9-week industry project from concept development to tested prototypes with a virtual reality experience.
Tools:
SketchUp, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe photoshop
PROJECT DETAILS
Project Plan
After the kick-off meeting with the team, I created a project plan.
Our Approach
Throughout the project, we adopted a user-centred design approach to understand the needs of the CDM students and to evaluate our design. We also used design-sprint and improv. techniques along the way to generate ideas and improve efficiency.
The Problem
The Center for Digital Media (CDM) campus was built with design and software development in mind. Therefore, it does not have a dedicated space for physical prototyping. In the recent few years, there has been an increase in the number of industry projects which require digital designs to interface with physical elements. In response, the CDM hopes to expand its ability and capacity by designing and building a maker lab.
Building empathy
Observation and user Interviews
From observations and user interviews with faculty, staff, and students at the CDM, we learned that the absence of a maker lab:
● Limited the capacity of the CDM to accommodate a wider variety of projects
● Limited the scope of the faculty members in envisioning the quality and form of final deliverables.
CDM students have to:
● Use their project room to make physical prototypes which is often messy and hazardous.
● Spend much time sourcing for materials and equipment.
● Pay for using public maker labs in Vancouver.
CDM students making physical prototypes in their project rooms
Due to the nature of the projects, CDM students do not only need a space to make physical prototypes, but also a space to learn from the digital media community hands-on, to test their designs, and to store/display their works.
Surveys
Surveys were sent to current and previous CDM students to understand their needs and opinions. Out of current students who completed the survey, 100% agreed that the CDM would benefit from a dedicated maker space to use for making physical elements of their projects; 67% stated that the equipment and tools they used for their Design Jam projects were not available at the CDM.
Equipment and tools that CDM students think would be most useful to have in the CDM Maker Lab
Equipment, tools, and supplies that current CDM students used for Design Jam that were not available at the CDM
From the survey data, we understood that:
● Materials and supplies are equally important as equipment and tools.
● The type of materials and supplies should correspond to course planning.
● There should be sufficient storage space for materials and supplies.
● There should be a management system for ordering, storing, distributing, and restocking materials and supplies.
Agile Statement
After discussing with the team, I reframe the problem and carefully crafted our agile statement:
Maker Lab Case Studies
We went on to visit local maker labs, e.g. Vancouver Makerlabs and Emily Carr University maker labs, and researched on maker labs in an educational setting online, e.g. Germantown Academy Innovation Lab, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Carmichael Makerspace. I analyze the common characteristics of successful maker labs in terms of their design and management:
Design
● Large area
● Central location
● Flexibility in space configurations
● Good lighting condition
● Different sections for specialized tools
● Providing both public and private working space
● Ample storage space
● Simple and minimal interior design style
● Large working benches
Management
● Efficient digital booking system
● Having lab technicians on site
● Trainings and tutorials on how to operate equipments in the maker lab
● Clear and visible rules and regulations
Design Criteria
Based on our primary and secondary research, I formed the following design criteria to guide our design.
● Flexible space configurations
● Good indoor lighting conditions
● Different sections for specialized tools
● Separated space for groups which need more privacy
● Sufficient working tables
● Ample storage space
● Minimal and modern interior design
● An informal atmosphere
● The CDM flare
The Process
Challenge 1. Site constraints
The physical site of the maker lab is an old mechanical room in building 577 on Great Northern Way. The room is small, filled with obsolete mechanical systems, does not have its own ventilation system, and has very poor lighting condition.
Overcoming the challenge
We use a design sprint technique to come up with various ideas to transform these design constraints into opportunities:
● Explore the possibility of designing around the obsolete mechanical systems.
● Explore the possibility of removing the obsolete mechanical systems.
● Design a flexible space to accommodate various functions and improve space efficiency.
● Explore the possibility of adding a dedicated ventilation system for the maker lab.
● Introduce skylights to bring natural light into the space.
● Design indoor artificial lighting and task lighting to improve the general lighting condition.
Challenge 2. User flow
Since there is no existing maker lab at the school, it is impossible to observe and document user journey. I have to design the user flow based on research and personal experience. However, the team feel that the design is arbitrary as people may want to use the space differently.
Overcoming the challenge
In order to improve the intuitively of the current user flow, I conducted a user test with the help of the team. users were given a task to 3D print a project and paint it. The steps were written on sticky notes and randomly arranged on the table. Users were asked to rearrange the sticky notes in the order they would think is the most intuitive.
From the user test above, the team analyzed the followings:
● The overall user flow is intuitive and logical.
● The maker lab should have a lab technician or assistant.
● The maker lab technician or assistant should not interfere with students’ working process unless necessary.
● There may be a need to design a separate office for the lab technician or assistant.
● People have very different preferences on how to receive instructions for using equipment in the maker lab. It is sensible to provide a variety of instructions.
Challenge 3. A multi-purpose space
The maker lab has to fulfill four major functions, to make, test, learn and store. The limited floor area makes it impossible to have four different zones.
Overcoming the challenge
Storyboarding different scenarios
To understand how the maker lab could be used to fulfill different functions. I worked with a UX designer to create four different scenarios of how the user may interact with the space based on our primary and secondary research findings.
Design Outcome
The main space is divided into different zones to fulfill different user needs. All the equipment, such as 3D printer, Laser cutter, and sewing machine are placed along the wall to free the central space for group collaboration.
When you the Makers Lab, the first thing you see is a shelf which displays prototypes that had been made in this room by the CDM students. The change of material on the floor and wall informs you to walk inside and turn to your right.
After collecting your materials and supplies, you will enter the main space of the maker lab, walk to the equipment, you booked and start to prototype
To make the space more flexible, we have added a grid system on the ceiling which provides tracks for mobile electrical outlets and lighting.
The grid system also provides structural support for the clamp system which can be used to pull up the tables and free up the entire maker space for different types of user test.
If you want to brainstorm with your teammates in a quiet and private space, you can divide the space using the folding partitions.
To use the equipment in the maker lab, you can use your student account to log into the online booking system, select the desired equipment, choose an available time slot and click reserve.
To book an equipment in the maker lab, you just need to use your student account to log into the online booking system, select the desired equipment, choose an available time slot and click reserve.
Impact
Our design was successful. In the last round of user test, we invited CDM students and faculty to go though the online booking system and test our design in Virtual Reality.
77.8% of the users feel that the online booking system is very user-friendly.
83.3% of the users feel that the user flow in the make lab is very intuitive.
94.4% of the users express that the CDM maker lab meets their needs and they would like to use it.
When asked users to use 3 words to describe the maker lab experience. The most common words are:
"well-organized", "intuitive", and "creative"
During the project, I worked closely with a highly competent, creative and resourceful team. The success of the project would not be possible without:
Alireza Shafiei （developer and video director)
Bigger Yang (3D modeler and Unity developer)
Cathy Lu (3D modeler and 2D designer)
Farbod Tabaei (Architect and 3D modeler)
Ruby Zhang (UX designer and Animator)
