Title: Creativity in the design process in the turbomachinery industry

Authors: Peter R.N. Childs, Shuo-Kai Tsai

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UK. ' Department of Engineering and Design, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QT, UK

Abstract: Creativity is perhaps the most prized human attribute and an essential element of the design process. Some creative ideas are astonishing and brilliant, while others are simple practical ideas previously not thought of. The history of mature markets reveals the importance of innovative approaches to maintain competitive positions. There are many creative methods available which can be used to enhance and provoke our generative activity but professionals tend to restrict their attention to very few methods. This paper explores the creative process and creativity in turbomachinery design. This sector presents particular challenges given the safety critical nature of power generation and flight, and the history of developments can be characterised by evolution without many dramatic breakthroughs. In the light of survey data and practice in other industries, recommendations are made for the application of creative techniques based on pre-disposition, internal and external mapping, idea generation and evaluation for implementation in the turbomachinery industry in order to meet the challenges of competition and reducing environmental impact.

Keywords: creativity; turbomachinery design; turbines; problem solving; pre-disposition; internal mapping; external mapping; idea generation; implementation evaluation; machine design; safety critical.

DOI: 10.1504/JDR.2010.032075

Journal of Design Research, 2010 Vol.8 No.2, pp.145 - 164

Received: 21 Nov 2008
Accepted: 10 Sep 2009
Published online: 08 Mar 2010 *

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