About Product Design
What is Product Design?
Product Design is the process of identifying an opportunity in the market, generating ideas, creating a solution for existing problems backed by market research and providing tangible solutions to the consumers. Products are generally designed for mass production – designing includes the physical & functional aspects of the product. The field of application lies in medical industry, computers, mobile phones, sports, appliances etc. Traditionally product design was done for material products but now-a-days, it also includes digital products like websites and applications. In today’s times, product design is important as it provides a real competitive edge to businesses.
What do Product Designers do?
Product designers design for the masses, they upgrade the life of the consumer by providing a solution. The Product Designers takes into consideration the production cost, the manufacturing process and the regulations. Also they take a critical analysis about the workability of the product by different consumer groups. They need to consider how people use & misuse products, faults with existing products & finding innovative ways in which consumers may use a product. They combine art, science & technology to invent new products that are user friendly for the consumers. Designers may specialize in a particular product instead of working with new products every time.
The design process starts with sketching and drawing ideas. This can be facilitated by using 3D digital tools and computer-aided design soft wares, which help them to visualize and analyze the final product. Before introducing the final product to the market, often prototypes are created and tested. In the process, the product designers often take help of other professionals like engineers and marketers.
Education in Product Design
Candidates who want to pursue a career in Product Design can study the course at Undergraduate & Postgraduate level. Popular colleges that offer courses in Product Design include NID, MIT Pune,etc.
Product Design Eligibility Criteria
For Graduation Degree: Though eligibility criteria may vary, but most colleges allow candidates who have completed 10+2 (Science/Commerce/Arts stream) from a recognized board to take part in their admission process.
For Postgraduation Degree: To pursue a Masters in Product Design, a Bachelors Degree in design is required.
Product Design Entrance Exams
All popular colleges conduct entrance exams in order to offer admissions to aspiring candidates. Some of the top Entrance Exams for Design are conducted by NID, NIFT and CEPT.
Product Design Course Curriculum
Though the curriculum may vary from college to college, some of the common subjects include:
Materials & Processes
CAD/CAM
Prototyping
Basic Mechanisms
Human Product Interface
Workshop Skills
Manufacturing Processes
Career in Product Design in India
The Industry experts are looking for all-rounders who have the knowledge and technical skills to excel in their careers. After earning a Bachelor’s Degree, one may take courses in CAD, sketching, manufacturing methods and industrial design, to make their resumes more powerful. The overall job growth in the industry is satisfactory. The opportunities and prospects are extremely rewarding for designers who specialize in the industry.
About the Author: Anu Handa is an Interior Designer, DIY Artist, Co-Founder and Educator at Mosaic Institute of Design. She has been the lead blogpost writer at www.mosaicdesigns.in since 2009. Her educational background in Interior Design, Urban Planning and the English Language has given her a broad base to cover a range of topics in her articles. Anu has spent 15+ years training Design & B.Arch Aspirants for entrance exams.
Passionate about Design Education, she’s briefly worked with Annamalai University as a paper setter for Design Exams. Likes to write about Design, Architecture and related fields, on online platforms like Quora. Aims at challenging the conventional & age old teaching methodology.
