工业设计专业英语(第3版)lesson26文章翻译.pdfVIP

精品文档 How Much Do We Need? —— Materials Knowledge The information superhighway has paved the way to a wealth of information for designers. Computerized databases, the Internet and the availability of “virtual libraries ”on-line provide resources once available to only the largest corporations. But while technology has changed the way designers work, many still rely on old habits; especially in the selection of materials and processing technology. Material specifications are almost an afterthought or “someone else ’s task, ”in part because we prefer to work on the intangible qualities of a product. The marketplace demands more. Today, the material often becomes the product. Weknow that materials can help to differentiate our product ’s character, add value, enhance performance and make the difference between success and failure. In a world where new processes and new materials keep appearing in a sea of acronyms coined to define endless combinations, we need to constantly challenge ourselves. Weneed to take more risks, do more research, explore more alternatives and learn how to optimize our selections. We know what we want, we just have trouble asking the right questions to find the correct answers and resources. Take the following examples: “What’s so great about this material, and why is it so gummy? ”I remember an industrial designer asking this question as he proceeded to explain that he required a material that was both stiff and flexible in certain circumstances. “Can you help specify a material without modifying our design? ”A well-known design company insisted on modeling a computer housing with zero draf