PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT USING DESIGN THINKING APPROACH

Description

Design thinking is a relatively recent, very efficient, team-based approach to innovations. This methodology , through five stages, motivates entrepreneurs to focus on their consumers’ demands, resulting in creative solutions. After interacting with customers and gathering a variety of ideas to address their problems, innovators select one or two winning concepts to test in the last stage of the process. The subject of this study is the application of Design thinking methodology to the problem of excessive amounts of wood residues in lumber industry in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Lumber industry encounters the problem of large amounts of wood residues remaining after production. Through five Design thinking steps, this study examines the development of numerous concepts suitable for solving the problem of sawdust residues, which in significant quantities remain unused in lumber industry companies. The idea of mycelium eco-packaging as a substitute for Styrofoam in transportation matters is one that has stuck to the end of the research. The cost-benefit analysis illustrated the financial advantages of mycelium eco-packaging over Styrofoam in addition to its environmental advantages.