The Principles of Design

This book presents the principles of design and constitutes an exposition of the design axioms and their applications; these axioms are the basic principles of design. The work is based on extensive experience at MIT's Laboratory for Manufacturing and Productivity, where axiomatics is a major programme. It aims to bring a scientific approach to the decision making process related to manufacture - an approach which facilitates rational design of processes, products, and optimization of manufacturing systems. While still controversial, it is attracting increasing interest. Just as there are many design solutions, there must be many diverse attitudes to 'design science'. The axiomatic approach is one of many possible avenues towards this goal.