A novel method of design elements based on EGM and fuzzy QFD

In the study, based on the evaluation grid method (EGM) and fuzzy quality function deployment (QFD), taking the design of cultural and creative products as an example, we explored the importance of customer requirements and design elements and the correlation among various design elements. In this study, the combination of EGM and fuzzy QFD could avoid their respective defects. Firstly, we used the EGM to collect and analyse customer requirements and design elements. Secondly, we calculated the weight values of the customer requirements with the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). Thirdly, we established the fuzzy relation matrix between customer requirements and design elements. In addition, the importance of design elements was calculated based on the fuzzy theory. At the end, the result of this study has drawn a conclusion including the significance ordering of the design elements within the design dimension and the correlation between each design elements. Clear quantification of design elements has a guiding role in the design process, and the research methods of combining EGM with fuzzy QFD can solve many problems in the research process. Hope that the research and results can be used for reference in the future design work. Copyright © 2018 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.