Last Friday’s review, our first, was helpful in many ways. First and foremost, making an early connection with a vast array of professionals with involvement and/or deep interest in this project is very important. This meeting was a way for everybody to get on the same page. Although, as a studio, we used graphics to help present our initial research and pertaining information, the most viable part of the meeting was the conversation that followed. There were plenty of questions right off the bat, which was a great sign; it showed that everybody really did have some shared interest in the success of this project.
Although we may have come away with more questions than expected, we also gained a lot of insight. We learned what everybody wanted to see in the final product, as well as what they didn’t want to see. Small differences were apparent in some people’s vision, but that can almost always be expected in a project in which you have so many players. This is great, and even greater that these small issues be figured out in the early stages. In the end, I believe we all came away with a better idea of the direction going forward.
Key notes taken away from the meeting are that we need to have a fixed idea on portability. There are many levels of portability, and maybe some different construction systems could be looked at. Other than containers and SIPS, what could fit our parameters of modularity? It was also made more clear that we, ourselves, will not be designing the kitchen layout; we are not interior designers. We must look at designing a space that will work for the ideal kitchen; while also taking into account that actual equipment will vary and ways interchangeability should planned accordingly in the design. Storage is something we did not necessarily clear up, but must be looked at. Also, what kind of cooling system are we going for, HVAC or a split system? One more thing we need to continue to look more carefully at going forward is cost monitoring.
Over the next week, we will be breaking apart individually and, as designers, coming up with ways to solve these problems. I am excited to see all of the interesting ideas we will bring to the table.