Active, local, connected: Strategic and methodological insights in three cases

Abstract

The activity of design is rooted in the very first part of the history of the industrial revolution. In the past century, designers invented new products, sometimes introducing substantial social or technical innovation; in other cases, they contributed to improving the aesthetic or technical quality of existing products or materials. Their role has been essential in the definition of an industrial model based on large production volumes for broad markets, but they have also contributed to the maturation of such a model toward sophisticated production platforms and product architectures, which allow industrial production to customize solutions for smaller target groups. Design's contribution has been to help define the social and economic role of industrial production in modern society-to the point that it has sometimes been seen as one of the key factors influencing the identity of the culture and the image of a country. © 2011 Massachusetts Institute of Technology.