Optimizing customer integration in mass customization of rapid manufactured jewellery

Optimizing customer integration in mass customization of rapid manufactured jewellery

Hermans, P.R.

Schoormans, J. (mentor)
Kester, L. (mentor)

Industrial Design Engineering

Industrial Design

Master of Science Strategic Product Design

2011-08-29

The Jewelcodesign concept was conceived on the back of a number of current trends. Mass customization, social networking, ecommerce and rapid manufacturing (a.k.a. 3D printing) were applied in a context of precious jewellery. Needs of jewellery designers and potential customers were studied through desk research, netnographies, interviews and observations. The concept was prototyped in two parts; a front-end website and codesign functionality in Google Wave. The prototype was used in three case studies. In each case a customer codesigned a unique jewellery piece together with a professional jewellery designer of her choice. The resulting CAD model can easily be 3D printed in wax and cast in a precious metal of choice. Case study analyses have shown customers enjoyed the codesign experience and were pleasantly surprised with their designs. Designers had no trouble in performing the codedign process online and helped identify opportunities for improvement. Financial scenarios were used to investigate the concept’s commercial potential. A marketing strategy was defined with a strong focus on social networking presence to drive growth through sharing of customer experiences and word-of-mouth.

mass customization
customer integration
rapid manufacturing
jewellery
codesign
ecommerce

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:ba9b91d4-e1f0-4d10-967e-674e38b4b606

Campus only

Student theses

master thesis

(c) 2011 Hermans, P.R.