From my experience in the retail imprinted apparel industry, the creative design work originates from design firms and advertising agencies contracted to manage the corporate identities of the companies ultimately selling the goods.
This is particularly true for larger companies. In other words, as far as larger companies goes, the neat stuff (and the way they look) are first conceptualized on the artistic level by the contracted marketing agency in charge. Producing products that would be most appealing to the broadest market of consumers.
The engineering, especially for existing products is secondary, going back and forth. Marketing is the driving force, if it don't sell, they shouldn't make.
Please note that it's the engineers invent the stuff, and since form often follows function, the marketing company does it's best to make it look good. And with a little back and forth, a product is born and placed on the shelves.
If a company has it's own department for each of those functions, then it's probably a tightly closed inside thing.
If you look on line for product designers, you'll find at least three categories: companies that do the design, engineering and manufacturing from start to finish, firms that are hired for design and engineering, and finally designers and artists that work freelance - whom get to come up with the ideas based on their reputation and connections,
I believe the designer of the modern day Swiffer duster products fall into that category...
It's all about prowess and reputation at that point.
But then again, I know very little from my prospective - and of course, if you poses whiz-bang skills with MoI, obtain some engineering education and start producing design work that has people talking - chances are that there's some firm out there that would consider bringing you on to a staff containing artists and engineers.
MoI is a superb application for visualizing a product with out being bogged down by the worries of engineering - for conceptualization's sake. It's has it's very needed place.
But since yes, "form follows function", a parametrics based engineering application is what's needed for the majority of the process.
That requires engineering.
If you happen to be an engineer that can think artistically, then the advantage is yours.
|