Industrial Designers impact a variety of sectors in Ontario, shaping both competitive advantage and quality of life.
Having emerged at the time of the industrial revolution, the profession still has close ties to manufacturing, driving innovation in products made both in Canada and abroad. As such, Industrial Design plays a crucial role in our daily lives, affecting everything we see, touch, and experience.
As the profession has matured, recognition of the role of Industrial Design in linking innovation, technology and business, all while emphasizing the psychological, physiological, and sociological needs of the user, is expanding.
Today in Ontario, Industrial Designers are driving business strategy through design thinking to develop innovative and effective services, and to craft experiences that no longer revolve around physical products alone, in vital areas from healthcare to transportation.
Chartered Industrial Designers continue to make vital contributions to the economic, social and environmental well being of our communities and our nation.
Integrated Design Process
Developed in partnership with DIAC, the Intergrated Design Process (IDP) is one of the most critical tools designers bring to the creative process. The process integrates designers with other experts at each phase of innovation and highlights means to leverage strategic design throughout the cycle of development, implementation and commercialization – recognizing that the assessment which concludes one innovation cycle will act as a key input to identify opportunities that inform the next.
Opportunity
Risk Awareness Unmet Need Vision
Strategize
Assess Resources Design Research Business Plan
Conceive
Ideation
Mock-Ups
Evaluation
Launch
Promotion Distribution Assessment
Implement
Specification Production Coordination
Develop
Modeling Prototype + Testing Refinement
Integrated Design Process
Developed in partnership with DIAC, the Intergrated Design Process (IDP) is one of the most critical tools designers bring to the creative process. The process integrates designers with other experts at each phase of innovation and highlights means to leverage strategic design throughout the cycle of development, implementation and commercialization – recognizing that the assessment which concludes one innovation cycle will act as a key input to identify opportunities that inform the next.
Where to Study
Ontario has excellent design education infrastructure. Established programs at Carleton University, OCAD University, and Humber College, along with the recent addition of a program at Sheridan College (which will graduate its first class of Industrial Designers in 2018), each provide students a foundation in necessary competencies while offering different emphases in their curriculum. Click for further details on each program.
