73452 - Product Design T (L-Z)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the workshop the student knows the design elements of the primary consumer goods at low prices and knows how to guide the development of a complete project. In particular, at the end of the ex-chair seminar, practical and theoretical activities envisaged, the student possesses the skills necessary to satisfy the needs of the user through his direct involvement, through the application of ergonomic methods, surveys, as well as questionnaires / interviews , task analysis, direct observations and ethnographies. In this context, the student knows how to set up, conduct and monitor a project activity which, through an ergonomically oriented approach, is aimed at increasing product performance and improving the psycho-physiological conditions of those who use them, has a conscious approach to the process of concept generation, it has the ability to synthesize design capable of bringing together the technological and producibility aspects on the expressive and formal value of the product. It also possesses the skills regarding the phases of technical design and technical production development.

Course contents

The Laboratorio di Sintesi Finale is dedicated to the theme of inhabiting, understood in its broadest sense as human shelter. The home has always represented an essential reference point for existence, the symbolic “north” of life’s compass: a place of safety, privacy, nourishment, leisure, and rest. However, many of its traditional functions are now undergoing deep transformations, and the ways of inhabiting today are increasingly distant from those of our ancestors.

“We have a body made to be in motion, our brain developed through strategies for navigating large spaces, yet our current network-based habits highlight the fundamental contradiction of a society born from the ownership of land. It is necessary to find new solutions for inhabiting and for the city, but as long as we keep seeking answers within the system that created the problem, we can only fail.”
— M. Corrado, The Invention of the Home: Story of a Trap

The Laboratory aims to analyze the various ways of contemporary inhabiting, including transcultural aspects and the perspectives offered by transhumanism, to identify responses and design proposals for new urban and non-urban habitats capable of integrating technological potential with evolving lifestyles between leisure and work.

The course is structured as a living lab of housing innovation, guided by a unifying project thread that will direct the work groups in developing innovative furniture solutions, brought to an advanced level of prototyping, in line with the professional skills expected of designers.

Readings/Bibliography

Professors will provide, in their lectures and in the moments of revision, precise references to texts, sites, journals, magazines, and documents available to deepen the topics presented. Bibliographic indications may also be added as a function of further information necessary during the educational path.

Suggested texts (being updated before and during the class period September-December 2025):

• Sicklinger, Andreas, Design e Corpo Umano, Maggioli Editori 2020
• Zannoni, Michele, Progetto e interazione. Il design degli ecosistemi interattivi, Quodlibet 2018
• B. Munari, Da cosa nasce cosa. Appunti per una metodologia progettuale, Laterza, Roma 2010.
• M. Salvadori, Perché gli edifici stanno in piedi, Bompiani, Milano 2000.
• M. Salvadori, M. Levy, Perché gli edifici cadono, Bompiani, Milano 1997.
• F. Celaschi, A. Deserti, Design e innovazione, Carocci, Roma 2007.
• F. Celaschi, Non Industrial Design, Luca Sossella, Milano 2017.
• D. Norman, La Caffettiera del Masochista, Giunti Editore S.p.A , Milano 1997.
• M. Corrado, L’invenzione della Casa, Storia di una Trappola, Padova 2018
• Z. Bauman, Modernità Liquida, Bari-Roma 2000
• R. Sennet, Costruire e abitare, Feltrinelli , 2018

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Teaching methods

The Laboratorio di Sintesi Finale is structured through lectures, guest talks (by professionals and companies), visits and site inspections, support for both desk and field research, as well as guidance in the design process leading to the development of models and prototypes.

These methods reflect the structure of the course, which is divided into three interrelated phases: research, concept development, and final design with prototyping.

The teaching team, responsible for the various course modules, will jointly support the design process in all its phases, supervising in-class work with students and ensuring both group and individual (team) reviews.

Classroom/online work, as well as project reviews, are fundamental steps in the students’ learning process: attendance is therefore mandatory, and will be recorded by the instructors. Students who miss more than 30% of the classes will not be admitted to the final evaluation.

Students will also be encouraged to take part in events promoted by the Degree Program (seminars with national and international guests, exhibitions, competitions, etc.).

The teaching methods will include:

• in-person/online lectures
• hands-on exercises, sometimes to be completed as homework
• group project reviews
• presentations by invited guests
• possible visits to involved (production) sites
• collective reviews during the development of the three phases: research, concept, and detailed design

Assessment methods

The Final Design Laboratory includes the submission and evaluation of deliverables for each of the three phases into which the course is structured.

The intermediate assessments will take place on scheduled dates, outlined in the general calendar distributed at the beginning of the course. Each group will publicly present their progress through a slideshow, and for each of the three phases, an evaluation will be given.

These intermediate evaluations will contribute to each student’s final grade (based partly on group work and partly on individual contribution).

As this is an integrated course, the final grade will be determined based on the individual assessments provided by the instructors responsible for the respective modules.

The final assessment will take into account:

• Quality of the deliverables and the model presented
• Quality of the research and design proposal
• Active participation in the course
• Punctuality in attendance and submission deadlines

The Final Design Laboratory will conclude in January 2026 with a joint presentation of the results, which includes:

• A digital setup of each group’s exhibition stand
• Presentation of full-scale prototypes (or scaled versions, if agreed with instructors)
• A project poster (100 x 70 cm format)
• A digital presentation of the research carried out

The final assessment, during which each group will have 20 minutes to present the stages of their project (research, design, models), will be graded out of 30 points based on the following criteria:

• Completeness and professionalism of the materials presented: up to 6 points
• Professionalism of the oral presentation: up to 6 points
• Originality and depth of the research behind the project: up to 6 points
• Consistent participation in scheduled project reviews: up to 6 points
• Performance quality and production feasibility of the proposed design: up to 6 points

Teaching tools

• VIRTUALE: communication between teachers and students; uploading of teaching materials; student assignment submissions; forum for students/community interaction;
• TEAMS: virtual classroom;
• MIRO: for brainstorming and other forms of collaborative design;
• Presentations/slideshows;
• Collaboration with external facilities (Model Lab, Photography Lab, libraries, etc.);
• Individual reviews of student project progress;
• Group reviews of student project progress;
• Final presentation of the projects;
• Participation in conferences, talks, exhibitions, and/or educational visits.

Office hours

See the website of Andreas Sicklinger