R4 Components
This area of the audit has been marked at '1' meaning very little knowledge if not any at all
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What I have learnt and what I now understand
After the session today I am slightly more clearer as to what this section of the audit means and entails. I now understand and have learnt that the term component means:
Fixings that are used to hold, attach or fix two materials or items together, it also relates to the assembly of a product.
I have identified that some examples of components could include things like, screws, hinges, nuts, bolts, screws and adhesives. We were also taught that there are two types of components: most standard components are classified as temporary fixings, which means they can be taken apart if required. There are other components that form permanent joints for example rivets and adhesives, adhesives are used to bond metals, plastic, and wood.
Now that I understand what components are I have now realised why this area of the audit is important for us to be aware of not only as designers but also as teachers.
As teachers it is inevitable that there will be times when our students will design or propose a piece of furniture for one of their projects and we will need to know which component will be the best to use and point them in the right direction. Generally speaking the standard components will be stocked in the department but I think that it is important to be aware of the alternative components that are available in DIY stores. The reason for this is because as designers we need to be conscious that although fundamental components hold materials together and support the functionality of a piece of work, they also are selected for aesthetics. This is an important factor that I now know is crucial to consider when making your selection of components. Bhav told us that components should be considered for aesthetics and if possible to be made into a feature rather than a hindrance, I think this helped me to understand why components are also important for us to know and to be aware of as designers. Therefore, what I now have identified and discovered is that a component's principle is to not only fix materials together but also to look good and fit in with the product.
In retrospect I now have realised that for my project in Design and Make (the storage cabinet) although I used temporary components which were hinges to operate the doors, I did not think about the different types of hinges that I could have used in order to compliment my work even further. To be honest I do not think that this is a factor that hinders my work because the hinges are not really on show but it is something that I could have thought about and considered more at the time. Now I know that it is important to approach and apply these techniques within your own work and shall put this into practice within the future.
Below is a picture of my cabinet where I used components
Just looking back at the Design and Make module and now thinking about the components I have used it has made me realise and learn a few things. I have realised that the temporary fixings that I used can easily be removed so it does not really matter too much if you decide to change them later on. For example, if you initially decide to use a brass hinge you can easily change it and use something like a galvanised or painted hinge later on in the process providing it was the same size. However, more permanent components such as an adhesive are really important to get right the first time because they are obviously irreversible so when you fix your material to another piece of material or item it is vital to run tests or model the fixing before hand to avoid any mistakes.
The two images below show examples of me putting this into practice within my own work. I trialed two types of fixings, I used nails for the temporary components and a contact adhesive for the more permanent component. In the end I decided to go with the permanent fixing because of aesthetics and practical reasons.
The two images below show examples of me putting this into practice within my own work. I trialed two types of fixings, I used nails for the temporary components and a contact adhesive for the more permanent component. In the end I decided to go with the permanent fixing because of aesthetics and practical reasons.
In addition, for my design and make I realised that I also combined temporary fixings with permanent fixings. For example I used pins to fix and hold the wooden frame of the cabinet or the carcass but also used a special wood adhesive to insure a firmer hold.
I also have used permanent components for my electronics project and even though it is classified as a permanent component I realised that if you are quick you can still move a glued piece around if you have positioned it in the wrong place!
To further my understanding in this area I wanted to find out and learn why standard components are used in the industry and came across a really good book that helped to explain this. (GCSE Success - Design & Technology - Resistant Materials, Authored by Chris Hughes)
To further my understanding in this area I wanted to find out and learn why standard components are used in the industry and came across a really good book that helped to explain this. (GCSE Success - Design & Technology - Resistant Materials, Authored by Chris Hughes)
I think that has put things into perspective a bit more and is something that is important to consider when designing something that is going to be Mass-produced or in large batches. I thought I would include this because it was a nice image to refer back to if need be but also to make me think more about why this is important in the industry.
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Analysis of new gained knowledge and the next step
When I first approached this area of the audit I had no a clue as to what this even meant within a Design and Technology context. As a result I marked the area initially as a '1' meaning little knowledge if not any at all and to be fair I think this was the correct grade all along. Now that I have been able to learn more about components and the importance of them I feel much more comfortable with this area of the audit, hopefully evidence of this will be clear in my engagement and learning stages. During this time I noticed that as a leaner I was fairly successful in my progress and at other points not as successful as perhaps first envisaged.
I felt that I was most successful when I identified as a learner the importance of components and why we should be aware of them as teachers but also as designers. I think like any content in Design and Technology it is important to understand the principles but also being able to show why you are transferring these skills and teaching students the content. By recognising such factors I feel that it displays that I am engaged with the content and also that I am thinking out side of the box and questioning why it is relevant rather then just showing that I understand it.
I found myself very successful once I looked back at my work from the last semester, I was quite quickly able to identify the differences, and pro's and con's of using more permanent components and temporary fixings. I feel it is always good to be critical with your own work but looking back with the new knowledge that I have now gained made me realise how important components are, and I know that they are not just for the purpose of holding a material together but also for aesthetics. It also made me realise that it is important to test such components when constructing your work and I was glad that I applied this within my cabinet during the manufacturing process. This is something that I shall certainly drill into my future students heads. In addition, looking back at my work it was useful to also discover tips that I had learnt without even realising, these tips contributed to my overall understanding and development within this area of the audit. For instance, I learnt that when applying the adhesive to the acrylic if you initially position a piece incorrectly you do have time to move it in the right place providing you are quick. Things like this I did automatically because I was just engaging with the piece and took my chances but I now have realised that this is an important concept to remember when teaching this to students.
In addition to this I felt that I have been successful in finding good sources such as the book mentioned which then enabled me to understand more about why components are used in the industry. Now that I have progressed in the course I have noticed that I have built up a good selection of resources that support my learning and development but now and then it is always good to look at visuals that help you learn. So I was pleased that I used my initiative and looked at other platforms other than the internet to help my development.
Generally speaking I do not feel I was too unsuccessful during this time. However what I think will benefit me in the future as a training teacher would be to become more familiar or up to date with the latest components. I could also look at resources that can help me to seek cheap and good components for when I may need them, or I could sign up to a magazine or follow someone on Twitter to help me be more up to date with these things.
If I am able to gather some nice resources of these components it will be a useful thing to refer to during my career. So this almost leads me to my next step in my further development. Not only do I want to show more examples of how I have put what I have learnt into practice within my new projects for semester two, I also want to be able to gather a few sources to help me later on and perhaps support further development in my learning within this area of the audit.
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When I first approached this area of the audit I had no a clue as to what this even meant within a Design and Technology context. As a result I marked the area initially as a '1' meaning little knowledge if not any at all and to be fair I think this was the correct grade all along. Now that I have been able to learn more about components and the importance of them I feel much more comfortable with this area of the audit, hopefully evidence of this will be clear in my engagement and learning stages. During this time I noticed that as a leaner I was fairly successful in my progress and at other points not as successful as perhaps first envisaged.
I felt that I was most successful when I identified as a learner the importance of components and why we should be aware of them as teachers but also as designers. I think like any content in Design and Technology it is important to understand the principles but also being able to show why you are transferring these skills and teaching students the content. By recognising such factors I feel that it displays that I am engaged with the content and also that I am thinking out side of the box and questioning why it is relevant rather then just showing that I understand it.
I found myself very successful once I looked back at my work from the last semester, I was quite quickly able to identify the differences, and pro's and con's of using more permanent components and temporary fixings. I feel it is always good to be critical with your own work but looking back with the new knowledge that I have now gained made me realise how important components are, and I know that they are not just for the purpose of holding a material together but also for aesthetics. It also made me realise that it is important to test such components when constructing your work and I was glad that I applied this within my cabinet during the manufacturing process. This is something that I shall certainly drill into my future students heads. In addition, looking back at my work it was useful to also discover tips that I had learnt without even realising, these tips contributed to my overall understanding and development within this area of the audit. For instance, I learnt that when applying the adhesive to the acrylic if you initially position a piece incorrectly you do have time to move it in the right place providing you are quick. Things like this I did automatically because I was just engaging with the piece and took my chances but I now have realised that this is an important concept to remember when teaching this to students.
In addition to this I felt that I have been successful in finding good sources such as the book mentioned which then enabled me to understand more about why components are used in the industry. Now that I have progressed in the course I have noticed that I have built up a good selection of resources that support my learning and development but now and then it is always good to look at visuals that help you learn. So I was pleased that I used my initiative and looked at other platforms other than the internet to help my development.
Generally speaking I do not feel I was too unsuccessful during this time. However what I think will benefit me in the future as a training teacher would be to become more familiar or up to date with the latest components. I could also look at resources that can help me to seek cheap and good components for when I may need them, or I could sign up to a magazine or follow someone on Twitter to help me be more up to date with these things.
If I am able to gather some nice resources of these components it will be a useful thing to refer to during my career. So this almost leads me to my next step in my further development. Not only do I want to show more examples of how I have put what I have learnt into practice within my new projects for semester two, I also want to be able to gather a few sources to help me later on and perhaps support further development in my learning within this area of the audit.
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Further development
As I have mentioned for my further development I wanted to look at some sources that I could perhaps use in the future. It was also to see if I was able to learn anything new about components. So far I have come across some good websites and below I have displayed the links.
This is just a starting point so hopefully I can build on this later on but it is important for me to know where to get these components because sometimes there might be things that are not in stock so I should be able to show the students where to go. I am also aware that Screwfix have their own magazine that you can keep up to date with the components so this is something I could register to in the future.
As I have mentioned for my further development I wanted to look at some sources that I could perhaps use in the future. It was also to see if I was able to learn anything new about components. So far I have come across some good websites and below I have displayed the links.
- http://www.screwfix.com/jsp/container.jsp
- www.boltdepot.com
- www.wickes.co.uk
- http://www.homebase.co.uk/
- http://www.diy.com/
This is just a starting point so hopefully I can build on this later on but it is important for me to know where to get these components because sometimes there might be things that are not in stock so I should be able to show the students where to go. I am also aware that Screwfix have their own magazine that you can keep up to date with the components so this is something I could register to in the future.
To add to my development in this area of the audit and to show that I have put these factors into practice. I have used this within my work for semester two but thought more about the aesthetics. For my church chair I decided to create a counter sink so that the nail head slotted into the wood nicely. It made it appear neat and to a professional standard. Here you can see an image showing this.
Here is another example of me using components to join materials together. visit the following link to see what I learnt during this time. http://benjenkins.weebly.com/r6-joining-techniques.html