sand lab
Project: Final year project
Merit: Tutors' Choice [Product design]
University: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Item: All about experience
Background: It is the era of experience business. People are now looking for the experience brings up by a product purchase. The obtainment is more than a tangible product, it’s about the personal experiential involvement and the spiritual enjoyments. This explains the trend why people join workshops designing and making their own items.
This project is selected as one of the "2017 Annual Show Tutor's Choice"
Workshop: 2017/05/31, 06/03, 06/10, 06/17, 06/24
A series of workshop was held during the PolyU Design Annual Show. Online booking was available for the public to join The Sand Lab experience. Each participant could spend 30 mins to complete a sand vase and bring it home. Maximum 9 participants a day.
The workshop was fully booked within 3 days right after the date of release. It had high attendance which visitors enjoy their experience and leave with happiness along with their own sand vase.
Design: The Sand Lab provides experiences that user could mold a sand vase in a flower shop for his/her cut flower. Molded sand vase is hardened and enable user to bring it home.
The watering process will cause the sand vase become loose gradually and eventually break down into a pile of sand when your flowers die, providing the second experience. The ever changing of shape therefore makes each vase unique. Fallen sand is able to be reused after rinsed with water and dried. Collect the sand back into the packaging provided and bring it back to the flower shop. Another experience is ready to begin.
Create a product that is not everlasting is the key idea. It's not about keeping an object but treasure the process you experienced.
WHAT ELSE?
The Sand Lab aims to design a framework where making experience will occur. Hence, the process & experience are the major focus of the design.
Different from other product design project, the products that are “designed” in this project are how the ready-made products combined to give specific usages, e.g. a brass switch is attached to each inverted flask to make it complete as the sand container, which allow designed amount of sand falls.
VALUES
From Designer/ My Perspective
▪ Convey message---It's not about keeping an object but process you had experienced.
From User/ Customer's Perspective
▪ Enjoy the experiences. Inspired by the message behind.
▪ Discover a new way to play sand.
▪ Satisfied about making a product by themselves.
▪ Learn about the molding techniques and science in a fun way.
▪ Have a eco-friendly vase.
VALUES
From Flower Shop's Perspective
▪ Promote the brand with its eco-friendly sand vase and flower purchase system
▪ The short product life cycle of sand vase encourage customer to repurchase the experience.
▪ Hold charged$ workshops to educate customer about floral design by using the sand vase.
01 The Material
The Sand Lab experience is inspired by traditional sand casting technique for metal casting.
User could create hardened sand vases by using sand, sodium silicate(Na2SiO3, a syrup-like water-soluble liquid) and carbon dioxide(CO2). CO2 gas acts as a catalyst to speed up the hardening time of sand vase.
Sodium silicate will dissolve during the watering process of flower, therefore causing sand to fall.
02 The Setting
a. Video demonstration
b. Sand container
c. User guide
d. Sand measuring glass / Mixing glass
e. Sodium Silicate measuring glass
f. Sodium Silicate container
g. 3 mins hourglass
h. Multi-purpose tool
i. Flower scissor
j. Electric stirrer
k. Flower
l. Rubber band
m. Moulds
n. 15 mins hourglass
o. CO2 gas box
p. Carbon Dioxide(CO2) gas cylinder
q. Flower bucket
r. Sand recycle bin
s. Unwanted flower bin
03 User guide
01. Choose your sand. Switch it on and let the sand fall until it reach the marks on the glass container.
02. Press and squeeze the chemical, Sodium Silicate(Na2SiO3) out of the glass jar into a small glass cup
until it reach the marks.
03. Use the multi-purpose tool to sweep the chemical [02] into the glass container [01].
04. Use the electric stirrer to mix the sand and chemical thoroughly. Use the 3 mins hourglass to count the mixing time.
05. Choose your mould.
06. Close the mould.
07. Fix the mould with a rubber band provided.
08. Use multi-purpose tool to sweep mixture [04] into the mould.
09. Use the multi-purpose tool to pack the sand firmly.
10. Choose your flowers.
11. Use the flower scissor to trim flowers into appropriate length, which flowers should not be taller than the gas box. Insert the flowers carefully into the sand.
12. Throw the unwanted parts into the unwanted flower bin.
13. Cover the setting[11] with the CO2 gas box.
14. Switch on the CO2 gas cylinder. Use the 15 mins hourglass to count the drying time.
15. Take off the CO2 gas box.
16. Apply slight hammering to the mould with the multi-purpose tool in order to release mould easily.
17. Take off the rubber band.
18. Release the mould carefully.
19. Your sand vase is completed!
20. Clean up! Sweep the fallen sand into the sand recycle bin hidden under the bench.
04 Take-Away
Put your sand vase into the designed packaging and bring it home.
05 Watering
Watering your flower by dipping the sand vase into water for 5 sec daily.
Sand falls gradually everytime when you holding or moving it.
06 Reuse & Re-Experience
After your flowers die, collect the broken pieces of sand.
Rinse the sand with warm water and dry under the sun.
Collect the clean sand back into the packaging provided.
Bring it back to the flower shop and have another new experience!
