Prototype making

prepared blue foams, hot wire cutter & sand paper

The Team at work... one cutting another sanding

platforms & supports that are supposedly identical with each other

satay sticks for joints, to replicate screws and bolts... in a way

closer look...

and the product that transforms...

from step stool to medium stool and then a standard chair!

Conceptualizing the IDEA

improved versions of the the initial sketches

Multi-functional Furniture

after much discussion... 

we've decided to go with this idea because it can accommodate replacement parts too!

we think it should be very simple

in my opinion it should be more simple than lego blocks 

how?

because it's major components are only 2 main parts which are

1. platforms - that are mostly long and flat pieces which would serve as seat tops, table tops, back rest etc
2. supports - that are mainly short and stacking pieces which would serve as legs, stretchers, or any other form of support structure.

rough sketches by the Team

3D Printer

its out there...

wait till you hear how much it cost...

Extra replacement parts

• Get extra replacement/spare parts when we buy furniture

since the parts comes with the furniture that we buy, we can already fix it ourselves at home if the furniture ever breaks. also it is quite unlikely the parts wont fit because it should be given accordingly for us to check.

we wont have to go any further than where we store the replacement parts in our houses to fix the furniture. the drawback? other than the fact that we have to carry the extra weight that the replacements provides, we have to know how to fix it in the first place. the spare furniture parts can only fix damages to a certain extent. if it involves the furniture being utterly destroyed, then there's nothing much the replacement can do. even if we manage to make full use of all replacement parts, eventually they're going to run out one day. at least this method extends the lifespan of the furniture from the time when it first broke... to a certain extent.

• go back to the shop and request for the specific replacement part when furniture spoil/break

first off... it eliminates the previous issue of the hassle to carry too much home for a single furniture. it prevents the replacement becoming clutters at home. and we just need to tell the retail assistant, or see for ourselves the specific parts that are required for the job instead of bringing a whole chunk back when we probably only need a simple part. now the drawback will be having to travel back to the furniture supplier, and it wont be efficient if they're located far away from home. let's say we did travel, make the request and received, having to figure how to put the things together requires effort. if the parts doesn't fit properly isn't bad enough, the worse is probably it damages the furniture further, or even worse... ourselves.

• have the replacement parts delivered to our doorstep by a specialist/repairman

this probably beats the above in getting the replacements parts, no need extra travelling, no need to carry anything, no need to look through and understand instruction manuals, what we need is just a phone call away from fixing the furniture. well now in order to achieve this we'll possibly need to pay more for the service, when it involves a professional, it takes skills, time and money. and of course someone has to be home when they come...

Narrowing the ideas

after discussing with the group, we have to narrow down the ideas which we already did.
but we have refine the ideas even further because the '101 ideas' was suppose to be just a kick-start.
more discussions...
now we have finally decide to look into the so called favourite 3
the 3 ideas are basically sort of mixed around with each other
in a way they can overlap one another

1. Extra replacement parts
2. 3D printer
3. Multi-functional furniture

we have to think about which one is the best one to go for, 

we weight them according to their advantages and disadvantages

to see which of these 3 chosen ideas will be the most ideal solution 

to our problem.

101 Ways to Solve the Problem

It is a fact that furniture does not last forever, and that the choice of material plays a big part in the durability of the furniture. but in order not to limit the solution to the materials we try to come up with as many solutions as possible. though some of them may be a little extreme. and alot of them are very similar.

1. often maintain the furniture
2. clean furniture after use
3. repair the broken furniture
4. protect from weathering
5. avoid exposing to rain and sunshine
6. give penalty to those who damage the furniture
7. avoid pushing & dragging
8. avoid standing on furniture
9. use furniture in the correct way
10. refinish furniture once awhile
11. refrain from using furniture as weapons
12. more function than form
13. use standard materials
14. avoid overloading furniture
15. give wheels to heavy furniture
16. make furniture hydrophobic
17. tighten the screws
18. use furniture for one purpose only
19. use broken furniture to make new ones
20. increase strength through volume of material
21. multi-purpose furniture
22. keep away from children
23. keep away from animals
24. furniture that is easily assembled
25. furniture parts that can be assemble in new ways
26. furniture parts that are easily replace
27. use sustainable materials
28. avoid dropping stuff on the furniture
29. avoid placing furniture in damp area
30. change the material
31. test the furniture before selling
32. add more foundation
33. treat the furniture well
34. avoid direct sunlight
35. avoid water
36. use 3D printer to print furniture
37. use stronger structure
38. do not keep pets
39. fortify furniture with metal parts
40. make an armour for the furniture
41. a company that collects used/broken furniture
42. and make them new again
43. a talk-show that teach people how to take care of furniture
44. a furniture-care course
45. fixed location of furniture
46. longer and bigger tables to be shared
47. replace chairs with benches
48. dig a big hole put the table in and sit around the hole
49. suspended/hanging furniture
50. recessed furniture
51. hidden furniture
52. pop-up furniture
53. remote activated furniture
54. switch activated furniture
55. furniture with sensors
56. furniture that grows itself
57. furniture that can heat up to prevent bugs and moisture
58. furniture hospital
59. recycled furniture
60. rubber furniture
61. bring your own furniture to work/school
62. furniture that can heal/regenerate itself
63. no furniture
64. create multi-purpose furniture
65. used recycle materials to build furniture
66. molded furniture 
67. that can be reshape through certain means like heat, electricity
68. shape shifting/transforming furniture
69. furniture that changes with seasons like colour

but before we hit 101 we already know where we are going with this