Design Knowledge promotes
the progressive practice of applied design,
the application of design thinking and
the multidisciplinary diversity of design innovation.

The design team have a very committed approach to activities and research, with leading practitioners and researchers in the professional and academic fields such as:

- Sustainability, working with Plymouth's Centre of Sustainable Futures
- Ideas methodology
- Incubation, mentoring, industrial laison and sponsorship
- Developing design education and studio culture
- Digital design and rapid prototyping
- Professional practise in production ceramics, metal and woodwork
- Sound drawing sculptures

Team members have a keen interest in technical innovation as well as more traditional approaches to the manufacture of artefacts.




Roberto Fraquelli
Roberto is focusing on a number of initiatives linking empathic design and sustainability. He is currently running innovation workshops
working alongside eco-author Edwin Datchefski from Bio-thinking, Line Leurentop for Insight Culture with companies such as TESCO and BAA.
He is also researching into sustainable hemp resins and their impact on domestic furniture and lifestyle products.
Outputs for Roberto Fraquelli 2001-2007 (including RAE 63 Art and Design):
(for further details please visit www.robertofraquelli.com)

01 Retail Interactive System for PRADA
02 Microgen for BG Group
03 Audience Tool Kit for the BBC
04 Bellagio for LG
05 Working Lunch for Steelcase
06 STV Spyfish for H2EYE
07 Innovation Centre for P&G
08 Workshops for SWRDA - EU
09 Published Paper, Salone del Mobile (Milan)
10 Published Paper, Jordan Design Centre

Pete Davis
Pete is currently writing and researching on several design related books and television programmes.
He is the one of the university's centre fellow's for sustainability issues and is interested in cirrulcum change within the design department.
Pete is also looking at the possibilities of generating new materials for use within the faculty and elsewhere from sustainable sources.
He is concluding a PHD that at its core deals with notions of experience, place and the manufacture of artefacts.




Roy Tam
Roy is a UK representative for the internation sustainability network O2, and specialises in low energy production in timber.
He has been funded by Leader+ for a feasibility study on a Centre of Sustainable Design in Timber with the aims of incubation by apprenticeships, which is still an on-going ambition.
His product research includes using solid timber and computerised methods towards producing a 'perfect' drum kit.
His published research includes a talk at the Design Museum to the 20th Century Furniture Research Group on 'Sustainable furniture design by Trannon'.
His teaching research includes 'cross year peer learning' and 'learning by professional practice' exposing students to gain experience in the real world.
He is currently working on a paper for the Rural Futures Conference on 'How landowners can benefit from planting young woodlands'.
His professional practice as a designer maker continues with commissions from clients like the King's Fund and the NHS, developing better healing environments.
He is an external examiner for MMU, a business mentor for Arts Matrix, a competitions judge and curator.




Polly Macpherson
Professional practice in production ceramics and research into Sound Drawings using 3D Rapid Prototyping




Brian Adams
Professional practice in production ceramics using 3D Rapid Prototype Tooling




We welcome links to other institutions and industry and are in the process of creating a conversation link to this page.

Contact Roberto Fraquelli, School of Architecture & Design, Faculty of Arts, University of Plymouth, Roland Levinsky Building, Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK
Tel: +44 (0)1752 585 170
Email: R.Fraquelli@plymouth.ac.uk




www.3Ddesign.org.uk

Updated 27 Jun 2008
Copyright Roy Tam University of Plymouth 2005-8