The two terms UX and Industrial design will likely be familiar terms to a lot of people who have been following the trends for some time. More specifically, those who are keen on design, whether they are designers themselves or simply those with an interest in fashion and aesthetics. What’s not as clear is how they differ from each other like industries. So if you don’t know what they are, you can’t tell the differences between the two, this is the perfect article for you. So let’s dive in.

Industrial Design (ID)

The term ‘Industrial Design’ was created in the 1920s when Alfred Jahnke (founder of the ID profession) was asked to draw up blueprints for the manufacture of drafting equipment. However, his design was rejected by the company due to its lack of beauty. After this point, industrial design became an identifiable field, unlike UX which developed over time. In modern times, this area of design has been utilized as a way to make UX more accessible for designers.

According to the 21st-century source of truth, Wikipedia tells us industrial design is the process of design applied to products that are to be manufactured through techniques of mass production. A key characteristic is that design precedes manufacture. The creative act of determining and defining a product’s form and features take place in advance of the physical act of making a product which consists purely of repeated automated replication, but still, that definition is not the easiest thing to understand. So let me give you my loose version of what industrial design is.

Industrial design has two parts. Form and function in a physical product and does one thing (i.e) help us do something in our lives.

• The form is “how it looks, what shape, how curved, how flat, how big, how long, what colour, what material, what texture, what type of finish.”
• The function is, “how it works, what it does, how to use, do you grab, do you hold, do you press or pinch or smash, how does it react, does it extend, does it click, does it bend.”

An industrial design product is physical, it’s tangible, it’s material. You can touch it. You can feel it. It has weight. It takes up space in your house, like what the Wikipedia page says is mass-produced, which means two of the same iPhones are going to look the same and work the same. The same iPhone is going to stay the same. If I give you my iPhone, it’s not going to get longer, get heavier, get larger. It’s going to be the way it is.

UX Design

The term ‘User Experience’ was used for the first time by Don Norman in his book ‘The Design of Everyday Things’ to describe the power that technology had seen throughout history. He argued that nothing was ever satisfactory until it was designed for the people who would be using it (Norman). Since this point, UX has become an important part of our lives, but what exactly does this mean?

A Simple Definition Of UX Design

UX design is essentially the process by which designers work to ensure that our technology is easy to use or understand by normal people. In the past, this meant that it had to be accessible or usable by anybody. In modern times, this also means that it works well with the user’s lifestyle and personality. It should, for example, be able to give a great experience without inconveniencing them on a regular basis.

UX is 100% digital, but some people might argue for me on that, but for the sake of simplicity and ease of understanding, it’s pretty much 100% digital.

My loose definition of UX design is that UX design has also two parts. Visual design and interaction design and does one thing (i.e) help us do something in our lives.

• Visual design is just “how it’s visually perceived, how it looks, what’s the colour for those buttons, what’s the corner radius for that text field, how big is the text, how are the elements laid out, left-aligned or justified or centred, does it look like a real object or is more simplified and flattened.”
• Interaction design or usability is “how it works, how do you navigate between screens. If it’s a web, do you click, do you right-click or hover. If it’s a mobile, do you swipe, do you double-tap, do you tap and hold. More importantly, how usable is the design, can users get to where they want to navigate to, does it help them accomplish their tasks.”

A UX design product is digital, is ubiquitous, accessible through various devices, and can exist on multiple platforms. You can access Facebook on your laptop, on your phone, on your tablet. If two users download the same app and these two apps can even be different, which in Silicon Valley they call this A/B versions, which means the company is going to have two different versions to perform the A/B testing to see which set of features performs better.

Difference Between UX and Industrial Design

Although the two terms have many similarities, there are a few key differences that separate them from each other.

If you juxtapose ID with UX, you will find a lot of similarities. Form and function in ID is pretty much the same thing as visual design and interaction design in UX. Industrial designers work with mechanical engineers to mass-produce a product. UX designers work with software engineers to create a product in a programming language.

Differences №1

UX is often used in a variety of different specific fields such as graphic design and web development. This means that it can be specific to a certain industry or a range of industries.

In contrast, Industrial design is used across all fields from architecture to technology and beyond.

Differences №2

In terms of visuals, UX focuses on the aesthetics of the user interface so, for example, it may focus on colour schemes or texture.

Industrial design, on the other hand, focuses on the aesthetics of the actual product. For example, it might focus on the colour schemes or texture of a car or phone.

Differences №3

Another key difference is that UX starts with an analysis of the current market, whereas Industrial design begins with an analysis of other similar products.

Differences №4

User experience is about making products simple, intuitive and memorable.

Industrial design is about making products desirable and affordable.

Differences №5

UX design involves market research and user testing.

Industrial designers use human factors, ergonomics and heuristics or rules of thumb to make products marketable.

Differences №6

UX designers will be obsessed with the aesthetics of the interface because ultimately usability becomes a visual entity rather than just a regular product feature. However, this should be kept as simple as possible and should not become an obstacle for the user to progress into other areas of the app or site they are using. If there is a better way to reach your goal then try that first before introducing obstacles for users such as introducing complicated buttons to reach certain functions.

The way a product looks is of great importance to industrial designers. This includes the structure, ergonomics and material. Many products will also become a part of a visual identity for a company or organisation, meaning that they must work well with the company’s brand.

Differences №7

The goal of UX design is to make technology more accessible for people of all backgrounds and demographics. In order to do this, the interface must be clear and simple, without any unnecessary clutter which can confuse users unnecessarily. In many ways, this is an art form that relies heavily on intuition and empathy with regard to what users need at any given time.

Industrial designers must also consider the way a product looks when it is used. This means that industrial design needs to be designed with consumers in mind. In order to do this, industrial designers will need to delve into the way humans interact with products and their environment in order to come up with something that is effective and attractive at the same time.

Differences №8

User experience design involves a wide range of research techniques which can include customer interviews, usability tests, sketches and wireframes. UX involves a lot of brainstorming sessions with consumers to ensure that they are happy with what is being built from the ground up.

While industrial designers will work closely with product managers and engineers, they will not be responsible for how the design is executed. Instead, industrial designers simply provide information and feedback to those who need it in the development stage.

Differences №9

Industrial designers design physical objects. They are tangible, they have weight, they have volume, they are persistent and pretty much stays the same, one week, one month, one year from now.

Whereas UX designers design is digital. Its core, it’s invisible, it doesn’t have weight and does not take up space in your house. It’s very fluid. You can change them often. If you look at Pinterest, for example, they update the app every two weeks, meaning you will get a different version, a new version of Pinterest every two weeks. Can your chair update itself every two weeks? Does it get an armrest or something in two weeks and then a headrest in another two weeks? I bet it doesn’t. At least mine doesn’t.

Differences №10

Because of the fluidity in UX products, the development cycle between the two ID and UX can be drastically different. It typically takes more than one year for a hardware product to come to light. For software, you can hack together a functional app within a week. It’s not about speed. They have different meanings and implications.

As a UX designer, you will need to work in a fast, ever-changing environment. You get to make lots of changes in one day, get your apps out faster. You might be able to design more products in your lifetime, but you cannot really, let’s say, frame them in a gallery, in an exhibition like you have a pedestal and then you put your app there. Doesn’t really work, and you cannot really touch it, feel it and hold it in your arm.

But you need to understand that if you work as an industrial designer, you will work in a slower environment and will keep polishing your design bit by bit and you can really get hold of a product in your hand in the end.