The brief
We were contacted by the Norwegian coffee production house Solberg & Hansen to design an espresso maker for the Norwegian market for whole coffee beans. Existing whole bean espresso makers are often complicated machines requiring skill to operate. The machine itself should have a low threshold of use, meaning the process of making coffee should be very simple while allowing for manual settings. The aesthetics had to communicate high quality and ease of use, all while suited for the Norwegian market and most importantly - brewing a high quality cup of coffee.
The process
While brain storming, the founding idea emerged from a small architectural contour model made of cork.
This model and the succeding ideas defined our concept story. Norwegian mountains and forests would spark the idea for both the shape and materials of the espresso maker. Wood would be the material, and mountains would be the shape. Layering the wood like the cork model would create a very different and new appearance. A look completely unique for these type of products. The sketching now focused on this direction.
Mockup & Focus groups
Having sketched out a shape we were happy with, we built a one to one mock up model. The model was carved out of styrofoam and finished off with putty to present to our focus group. Quick 3D mockups lets the end user get an approximate impression the end product. Letting the user influence the design at a early stage ensures that the product is tuned in to its targeted consumer group. The focus group consisted of random people within our target user group. They were first interviewed regarding their relation to coffee, and was then presented with our espresso maker. The testing provided us with unbiased and very valuable feedback. In general our maker received a very positive feedback with some remarks on the size, positioning of the dials and buttons, and the water and waste compartments.
The build
We chose a construction where we would layer up 1.5cm thick planks of Populus. This would ensure a nice dynamic appearance with continuous lines throughout the shape.
CATIA was next. Considering we were to make the machine in wood, we faced a series of challenges. Our school has a CNC milling machine, but they do not have the appropriate equipment to mill wood. We therefore had to find a way to translate the computer model into a real life model.
Easier said than done, but we found a solution. In CATIA we would slice the 3D model in 1.5 cm thick horisontal cross sections , corresponding to the woodplanks.
We would then extract each silhouette of these cut shapes of the 3D model, much like a contour map. We plotted out these shapes in 1:1, 35 in total, and traced them off atop each of the seperate wood planks. After cutting out the shapes of the wood plank, we were left with a very rough 1:1 model of the 3D-model - merely hinting the final shape. These were then glued together in a very specific order so the neccesary holes could be cut out of the shape.