To: All ID Juniors and Seniors:

I wanted to tell you about Integrated Product Design (IPD) and the great benefits of taking this class, working directly with business and engineering students and professors. IPD is a class with two other colleges, Babson school of business and Olin College of Engineering. I would like to attempt to explain why you should consider taking the class in the fall.  

Please take a few minutes to review and consider this class and the long term benefits you may gain by taking it.

What is Integrated Product Design (IPD) ?

Integrated Product Design is the integration of:

+ marketing,

+ design,

+ engineering  

Developing innovation by combining skills of Business with Design and Engineering.

We are doing this with three colleges:

 Babson Business College

 Massachusetts College of Art +Design

Olin College of Engineering

Each with the deep knowledge and expertise in the three areas. We believe that these are the building block for successful innovation, and be of great benefit as you move in the the working world of design.

By integrating the design and development process we are creating new products that have well rounded solid Engineering, Marketing, and Design. This course develops a classroom experience which reflects  real world best practices for innovation.

Why take Integrated Product Design (IPD) ?

This is not your fathers team project! Yes,in the Integrated Product design class you will work in a team with students will an interest and focused understanding of Engineering, Marketing, and Design. These team projects also has a team of  three professors leading the class, each with an expertise in product development with a deep knowledge of their specific disciplines. The focus is the integration of the marketing, design, and engineering functions in creating a new product. The course is intended to provide you with the following benefits:

• Competence with a set of tools and methods for product design and development.
• Confidence in your own abilities to create a new product.
• Awareness of the role of multiple functions in creating a new product (e.g., marketing, finance, industrial design, engineering, production).
• Ability to coordinate multiple, interdisciplinary tasks in order to achieve a common objective.
• Reinforcement of specific knowledge from other courses through practice and reflection in an action-oriented setting.
• Enhanced team working skills.

How do we teach Integrated Product Design (IPD)?

Our class sessions will explore the knowledge, methodologies and tools associated with this process.  In turn, we will put this process to work - in our classroom and in product design and development facilities at Babson College, at Olin College of Engineering, and at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. The results will be a well-researched market and product opportunity, a product design and an alpha-prototype - all presented at an end-of-semester presentation session, with guests from the Business, Engineering and Design communities. We move between college campus to broaden the student explores to each disciplines culture.Below are links to two projects from last years IPD class:

Project : Sprout 

Team: Julie Manzi, Charlie Behlings, Evelyn Hunter, Robert Golman, Connor Swatling

Project : TAP

Team: Benjamin Hannon, Donna Bengio, Brett Rowley, Christian Gordon, Kathryn Lau

I realize that most of you have registered for your fall class and I thank you for taking the time to consider adding this course at this late date.

The course Title is: EDID303-01 Integrated Product Design,  Thursdays for 2:30 to 6:30. .

Please feel free to email at | e.jread@massart.edu

Best, Jamie

James Morley Read

Professor of Industrial Design, IDSA