Extended group design activities for the enterprise society

Design is commonly thought of as an activity to convert an idea into something tangible. Typically students are set a technical "design task". However in the modern world the business and enterprise dimensions of design are becoming increasingly important. This paper sets out to describe design as an activity which is a combination of different strands working synchronously on both the technical and commercial aspects of a new product or system creation. An effective, innovative design requires state-of-the-art knowledge from diverse sources including suppliers of materials and components, manufacturing techniques, customers, competitors and enterprise stakeholders. Knowledge must be collected from both the technical and commercial spaces associated with the particular project. This is difficult in the undergraduate situation, particularly that knowledge associated with the business side. This paper describes an activity in which students can simulate such a total design project and can understand the importance of business and of communicating with others who may own different but relevant knowledge. The focus of the paper will be how the elements are brought together to produce a coherent design based 'Business Plan'.