Well Thought-out Design

I once owned a SUV that really impressed me from a design standpoint.  You might think this is laughable, but the one thing that surprised me the most about the vehicle was the amount of thought which went into the headlight replacement. Yes, I said the headlight replacement.

Have you ever replaced the headlight in your car or truck?  It’s typically a pain in the butt!  You have to unscrew a cover under the hood, undo the metal clamps holding the light in place, turn the bulb, then pull it out of the connection port all while being a contortionist at the same time.  Not so with my SUV.  All I had to do was lift the hood, turn the cap behind the lamp, and pull out the bulb. It was easy to get to, required no tools, and resulted in no hurt fingers, no cuss words, nor frustration. One reason I liked this design so well is because the owner of the vehicle was considered.

When we are designing and fabricating exhibits, I think of this example of good design more and more with every project.  During design reviews, I ask questions like, “Have we considered the client’s use and access with the exhibit?” and “Is it easy to change out a bulb when needed or did we expect our client to be a contortionist?”  We haven’t always been good at keeping accessibility in mind, but we continue to improve and make easy maintenance a priority with each project.  As long as we do that, I am happy.