A little upside down thinking

When I was flipping through the IKEA catalouge, I chanced upon the following picture and article.





I like the philosophy behind the article and how simple solutions are easily found with a little creative thinking.

Few nights ago, I read the article you posted and couldn't understand what it's saying. Thought it was because I was sleepy then . However, I read the same article again in IKEA catalogue yesterday, but still don't get it. Can you explain what it's trying to express? I think it's too abstract for me.

well why i liked this article is that i liked the way ikea approached the problem. They would consider both the design and manufacturing process together, thus reducing integration problems if these two stages were seperate in the product development cycle.

A creative approach to the problem (by looking at it upside down instead of right side up) can also easily solve the problem. I do not think when one is purchasing a mug they would consider what a mug should not hold, since it's what they want to put inside the mug that is more important. However, this should be a concern, since stagnant waters may increase baterial activities or pose mosqitoes hazards.

I don't understand how Design for Manufacturing can spur creativity. How did IKEA's product developers came up with the idea of "what the mug should not hold" while designing the mug for manufacturability? I don't see the link.

hmm their idea is that when more constraints are placed, the job is more difficult...hence more creative and crazy ideas have to be thought of to overcome these constraints (instead of traditional ideas). Of course i do not know if this is really true in practise...

Ooohhh.. I think the clouds in my brain are clearing..

Instead of proceeding straight to conceptualize the cup conventionally, the developers formally specify the requirements of the cup, especially manufacturing requirements. This process aids the formulation of other essential requirements such as "Shouldn't hold dishwater".