Question

What is the practice of “fast-tracking” or “design/build?” What are the associated potential benefits and dangers?

What happens during the design stage? Who is involved? What do they do? What is the role of the project manager? How are design changes monitored and controlled?

What is the role of interaction design in product design and development? What does the plan for production/build include?

What happens during the production/build stage? How is work planned and coordinated? Who oversees the work?

Answer 1

· Fast-track construction refers to a construction method wherein construction begins on completed design even though the rest of the design is in-progress. This fast-track approach is mostly preferred by design-build firms as it speeds up the entire project life time. The potential benefits of design-build construction are-

                - One project is handled at a time.

                - Project will be completed on-time

                - Accuracy in cost and time and cost efficiency is considered by the designer.

The potential dangers of this method are-

                - A high degree of trust is required between the project owner and the contractor as it involves change orders and sub-contract negotiations.

                - Cost estimates might actually be lower than the actual cost because of fewer complications in the project.

· Project design stage is the early stage in a project wherein the key features, project structure, critical success factors and deliverables are planned in this stage. The primary aim is to design one or more designs to ensure the project goals are achieved. Design phase follows initiation and definition stage. Project supervisors are involved in this stage to choose the design and this move to the next developmental phase. The changes are constantly monitored and controlled because once the design is chosen; it is difficult to make changes to it. The project manager/leader supervises the workflow such as choice of design, approval from project sponsor or head, development, implementation, etc.

· The role of interaction design in product design and development is vital for the success of the project. Interaction design is the design of the user and product interaction. The main goal of an interactive design is to create product that meets user experience (UX). The plan for production/build includes resources like materials, human capital, capacity, methods or processes to complete the project in the defined duration.

· In the production/build stage, all the stakeholders assemble to have a consensus on the agreed project deliverables. The discussion would include criteria like how to maintain quality, storage of materials and resources, hours of working, legal resources, selection of vendors, reviewing platform, log creations, etc. The team is assigned responsibilities for their work tasks. Without production plan, it is not possible for the team to achieve the project goals. The project manager supervises the implementation of the production plan and handles any criticalities in the project.

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