Consider the following problem statement and state whether it is adequate or not, giving reasons. Also state the next steps in the design process.

Question

Design a table for the CEO of a large company. It should have a drawer for pencils, pens, erasers, and other stationery items, a drawer for high-value items l(e.g., the keys of the safe), and a drawer for arranging important documents currently under review. There should be ample space on the tabletop to keep three or four open documents as well as hand and leg spaces for two persons sitting opposite to the CEO. There should be provision for and space for a desk lamp. The table should be attractive and act as a status symbol for the company.

Answer 1

This statement is not adequate because it mainly describes what the product is. This means it is the view of the company and not the person (CEO). The CEO would say what are the functional requirements of the product. For example he may say that he needs two power sockets and three or four data sockets and connection to the data-bus.
The functional requirements should be prioritized and those with high importance should be combined with those required by the company under the heading ‘Benefits to be delivered’ to form the selection criteria.
A function tree should be established and the specifications should be drawn to meet the customer requirements.
Alternate concepts should then be proposed to perform the functions according to the specifications and constraints.
A concept is chosen according to the selection criteria established earlier.
Generate the embodiment design.
Establish the Detail design.