Quality versus Quantity and the Role of the Designer in the Manufacturing Process

Modern manufacturing has allowed society to make giant leaps and bounds within the sphere of building. But how much are we sacrificing for this to occur? There is a fine line between a quality product and its counterpart- the quantity product. Who is responsible for maintaining this balance? How can we ensure that the responsible parties are aware of how something will be produced? Designers must be educated in manufacturing processes so that they can act as a quality control buffer and make informed decisions about the product specified. The responsibility of maintaining a balance between quality and quantity (or cost) is a joint one. In some cases, it may fall on the craftsman, who pushes out more product in order to compete in the market today. In others, it may be on the manufacturer, who uses particular methods of building in order to ensure a quality product. However, in most scenarios, furniture is produced to spec, per the intent of a designer. Whether the craftsman or the manufacturer makes the product, some sort of design minded person is behind the order and has the final say on how a piece that they have commissioned will look. A purchase order is issued to a manufacturer or craftsman based on a provided quote. Shop drawings are reviewed by a designer to ensure that the proper materials are used, the proper dimensions are met, and that the aesthetic of the piece matches the designer's vision. In recognizing that a portion of responsibility for the manufacture of product falls onto the designer, who submits a specification to a manufacturer, and approves or denies shop drawings, we can recognize a missing piece of their fundamental education. Newly graduated designers lack basic knowledge about the way things that are used every day are built, how they want them built, and what materials are used to build them. Extensive engineering and labor processes are required to fabricate products; processes that a designer may know nothing about, thereby forfeiting their involvement in quality control. This first section of this paper will strive to address issues of quality versus quantity, and the role of the designer in maintaining a balance between the two. In addition, it will focus on implementing methods to educate designers on manufacturing techniques, essentially creating a quality control mechanism in terms of furniture specification. The second section will consist of a developing course outline addressing the basic knowledge and application of manufacturing techniques for interior designers.