Rebekah Brosens

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University of Nottingham > Engineering > Departments > Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering > PDM Exhibitions > 2023 > MEng students > Rebekah Brosens

An outdoor office kit aimed at utilising unused space at home.

My time at the University of Nottingham has forced me to grow as a person and a designer. Within this course, which is combination of product design and engineering, I have had to apply both a technical and creative mindset to my work. Finding it hard at first, this duality of thinking now allows me to find the optimum solution to a brief, one that is both feasible and desirable.

What drew me to the University of Nottingham’s product design course was its strong emphasis on manufacture and engineering. I find it rewarding to know that a product I have designed is able to be brought into reality and used by the world. As such, I recognise the importance of these disciplines. I personally find the technical aspects challenging, but this course has taught me the satisfaction found in resolving a product absolutely.

Despite my draw to problem solving and resolving an idea to completion, I believe my real strength is towards the creative elements within design. I personally adore the freedom and possibilities the concept stage offers, where I am able to showcase my individuality and way of thinking within a project. Being able to see an idea blossom to a sketch and eventually evolve into a product, excites me. For this reason, I also love the final rendering stage of the design project; where all the hard work, detail and consideration put into a design is finally realised and visualised. I strongly enjoy playing with lighting, environments, textures, and positioning to help explain the product whilst making it appear as desirable as possible.

Moving forward, I hope to move to a role that offers a combination of technical challenges and creative freedom. I aim to grow and evolve as a designer to develop a skillset that allows me to produce products that help makes the world into a smarter, easier, and more beautiful place.

Rebekah Brosens, MEng Product Design and Manufacture

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Prism

Prism is an outdoor office kit aimed at utilising unused space at home. Over 24% of the British workforce work at least partly from home, however only 11% of these have a specific workroom, instead working from bedrooms, kitchens and living rooms. This can lead to feelings of claustrophobia, distraction, and unproductivity. Prism offers a solution to this by allowing users to create an office within their garden. Meaning they can maximise their residential area whilst reaping the benefits proven by working within nature.

Prism sets itself apart by being able to be self-installed in four simple stages; constructing the base, the walls, the door, and the roof. This can be done by two people, eliminating the need of tedious contractors, or requiring the product to lifted in, which can be impossible for people living in urban areas with limited access.

The product relies heavily on utilising compressive forces to support itself, with minimal use of mechanical fasteners, this makes the installation process less daunting, more watertight, and easier to disassemble in the case of moving. The wall and floor panels have been engineered to simply lock into each other making the installation process easy; whilst their overlapping design protects the structure from weather infiltration.

Additionally, the wall panels follow a sandwich structure, whose design was inspired by SIP’s and Rainscreen Cladding systems. Each panel includes a WPC exterior layer which is extruded with an offset creating a gap between that and the neighbouring layer. This improves its insulating properties as well as protecting from mould and damp. A PIR insulation board maintains thermal insulation year-round, whilst an OSB sheet gives the panels structural integrity, then the final interior layer is applied.

The wall panels come with three different interior options including a WPC extrusion, High-Gloss OSB and a Painted MDF. As the office is comprised of 15 different wall panels, there are 90 different possible interior combinations (without even including different colour options), meaning it can precisely match the user’s style. This flexibility is increased with the choice between translucent light diffusing polycarbonate panels or transparent ones, allowing users to control the degree of light exposure vs privacy within the structure.

Another feature is the bespoke gallery door which helps maximise the space allowance within the UK’s Permitted Developments Act (which determines whether planning permission is required) allowing users to extend the footprint of the office by simply opening the door without it being considered under the act. In warmer months the door is able to remain open for those who enjoy the sensation of working outside whilst remaining in the comfort of their working area.

Prism’s dimensions can be easily adjusted by altering the length of the brackets, the dimensions of the polycarbonate and roof panels, and the number of the sandwich panels.
Its modern aesthetic elevates garden spaces, rather than detract from them and provides a sanctuary for remote workers to work in, relax in (or hide from their children).