Polifactory is interested in a relationship between design and changes in production models in various way.

For this reason Polifactory offers the possibility to graduate students of the School of Design that are held in one of the following areas.

• Digital fabrication and new manufacturing. Digital fabrication and new manufacturing. This area explores the relationship between design, new technologies and processes for digital fabrication – third and fourth industrial revolution and contemporary crafts – in the various sectors of manufacturing production.

• Interaction design and IoT. This area explores the relationship between design and digital technologies for the materialization of artefacts that develop new forms of interactivity with objects, people and environments.

• Maker culture. This area explores the role of culture maker in redefining the processes of designing goods and services such as Digital Do-It-Yourself, open design and open hardware, distributed production, personal manufacturing, and hacking.

• New (maker)spaces. This area explores the theme of the design of new collaborative spaces for prototyping, experimentation and learning the use of digital technology technologies: new services, activities and initiatives that these places can generate or host.

• Small urban manufacturing. This area explores the new models and production systems on small and very small scale (on-site production, tailor-made, on-demand, …) realized in urban contexts and developed by new artisans, micro-manufacturers and micro-producers.

• Independent design. This area explores the figure and role of the designer-firm, ie designers who are transformed into independent producers or create innovative start-ups.

• User-centered healthcare. This area explores new products and services for the treatment and reduction of disabilities that can be developed through cooperation between users (eg innovative patients), centers and institutes for care, designers, makers and fablabs.

• New food and agriculture. This area explores new products and services for traditional and innovative forms of agriculture and new agri-food production processes influenced by the relationship between design, digital technologies and biotechnologies.

Are you interested in proposing a thesis in one of those areas?
Send us your idea (max. 2000 characters spaces included) at polifactory@polimi.it.