Storage Step
A dresser crafted to be both safe and climbable for children, promoting exploration while prioritizing their well-being
Fall 2018
Problem
Furniture poses a risk to children; every two weeks a child dies from furniture that has tipped over and every 30 min a child is sent to the emergency room from falling furniture.
Solution
Our solution was not to try to prevent the child from climbing, but to make a safe climbable dresser.
Final Product
Using the design process, my team and I came up with multiple designs and chose a pyramid block idea. From
there, the idea was iterated and the levels of the pyramid were shifted in different ways. User feedback on the designs was received. The overall consensus was to have a more space conscience dresser by equaling the depth of the bottom and middle tiers. The top level also became a chest storage space rather than a pull out drawer.
The three tier dresser's center of gravity is located at the bottom. Although children are encouraged to climb and play on it, the design is modern and mature enough to last the child even after he or she has grown up.
My Contributions
While creating the Storage Step, I helped come up with the pyramid design. Additionally, I was the lead of construction and figured out how to transforming the Storage Step from a drawing on a page to a physical dresser. I delegated and managed manufacturing tasks to my teammates and built the chest on the top of the dresser.
Skills Used:
-
Drill press
-
Hand drill
-
Staple gun
-
Bandsaw
-
Table saw