NEWS RELEASE
June 6 2003
UniSA
brings designer trolleys to Adelaide Central Market
Redesigning what has
become a post -1960s suburban icon – the shopping trolley – is the
major project for more than 30 UniSA Industrial Design students this
semester.
And their hours of
shopper research surveys and concentrated innovation will be put to an
appropriate test this week at Adelaide Central Market when the student
designs will be showcased for shopper reaction.
The new trolleys,
backpacks and baskets will be on display at Adelaide Central Market on
Friday from 1 pm when the new Lord Mayor Michael Harbison will test some
of the student designs.
UniSA industrial design
lecturer, Peter Schumacher, says the real challenge for the students has
been in getting into the mind of shoppers.
“The students need to
master user-centred design and in this instance that has meant really
nutting out all the aspects of shopping trolleys or bags that are
important for market shoppers - from how they look, to what they can
carry, how easy they are to manoeuvre and how they can be stowed away,”
Schumacher said.
“The preparation for
that included students surveying about 200 regular Central Market shoppers
on what they needed from a shopping carry-all, before they even began to
think about what to design.
“Part of the process
has also been to reject and reshape the stereotyped notions of shopping
trolleys which in have, in the main, been designed for aisle shopping in
large supermarkets.
“The students’ goal
was not only to develop a product that was functional but also to bring in
some design factors that took into account the need for convenience and
even pleasure in market shopping. Specifically they needed to understand
the way people shop at the market – to look at foot traffic and shopper
habits.”
Schumacher says the
designs range from ingenious collapsible trolleys through to innovative
backpacks and roller bags and even an adventurous cobra shaped wicker
basket.
“Many of the designs
include intelligent details that make the trolleys really easy to use,"
he said.
“We hope to inspire
some shopper reaction and in this market testing stage, to see if the
designs actually do meet consumer needs,” he said. This is one of the
most important testing phases for any new product and it will help
students to rethink their project or to expand or maintain some of their
most successful or appropriate innovations.”
News editors
please note: Student designs will be on display at the market from 1 pm
and throughout the day groups of new designs will be tested. More
information: Peter Schumacher tel (08) 8302 0361
Media contact:
Michèle Nardelli – tel (08) 8302 0966 or 0418823673
Need
an expert? Find one at UniSA’s online
Directory of Experts -
http://www.unisanet.unisa.edu.au/MDU/MDU-search.asp
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