TIMID

Project Goal

The objective was to use glass as a viable medium for innovative yet cost-effective production. The products were designed to be current in regards to: functional suitability, economical use of material, method of manufacturing, and aesthetics.

External Considerations

• Environmental: glass production requires a very high input of energy
• Economic: raw materials are only available in the US or overseas, narrowing the profit potential
• Having waste material is extremely inefficient

Internal Limiting variables

• Small start-up budget
• Limited space for manufacturing
• Production methods were limited by the few machines/tools at our disposal
• Product price point: aiming for high-end gift market

Solutions

• Product design started with our machine and tool capabilities
• Waste material: product dimensions were determined based on the available sizes of raw materials, aiming for zero waste.
• Energy input: Incremental, high-volume production methods allowed lower consumption per unit.
• Having consideration for all the production constraints allowed us to hit our target price point without closing our margin for profit.

Creative

TIMID’s aim was to embrace industrial process in the pursuit of efficiency, but maintain an intimate relationship with the character of the hand-made.

In content, TIMID products subtly inserted unusual elements into domestic life. Metal safety-tread into dinner parties, for example, bullets into décor and diamonds into zesting.