Common Sense 101 - Engineering - December 16, 2012 Edition

Common Sense 101: Engineering
Summary
1. Everything should completely fit the purpose(s) for which it was originally intended
2. Everything should be as ergonomic as possible (or more accurately, have human factors engineering
built into it, to the max)
3. Everything should be made of parts that snap together to assemble, and unsnap to dismantle
4. Everything should be made of parts which can be moved around, handled and snapped together by
just one person
5. Everything should be made of parts that are easy to pick up and hold—no part should ever be too
small to be picked up easily (or too small to get lost)
6. Everything should be easy to move around without machinery (think: wheels, castors)
7. Everything should be easy to transport over long distances (think: fit into a car, or at most into a
truck)—anything bigger than that should be easily dismantlable
8. Everything should be easy to clean (preferably with just water, soap-and-water, or a wet rag)—even
in its crevices and hard-to-reach places, if it has any
9. Everything that is not supposed to wear out due to friction should last forever
10. Everything should have the lowest possible cost of ownership over the years it’s intended to last
11. Everything should come with a no-questions-asked life-time warranty (like “Craftsman” brand tools)
12. Everything should be low-maintenance—or preferably no-maintenance, even when in hard daily use
(think hammer, think anvil!)
13. Everything should look cool (at least as much as most Apple products created under Steve Jobs, or a
Tamburini-designed motorcycle—and, preferably, cool enough to be displayed in the Guggenheim)
14. Everything should have some quirk or special character that makes people fall in love with it (think:
the first iMac, Pagani cars)
15. Everything should be given a cool name or appellation (think: iPod, Kleenex, 911)
16. Everything should look just as good old as new—indeed, preferably look even better old than new
(think: Chippendale furniture, Stradivarius violins, Holland and Holland rifles)
17. Everything should be made of parts that cost a reasonable amount of money to make—and thus can
be sold at a reasonable and competitive price
18. Everything should cost, for the buyer, only as much as the cost of the sum of its parts, plus the cost
of the (minimal) amount of time and effort needed to snap them together
19. Everything should be adequately advertised (so as to ensure good sales)
20. Everything should be easy to make
21. Everything should be easy to buy
22. Everything should be easy to use
23. Everything should be easy to re-sell
24. Everything should be easy to upgrade and expand