I am the Course Director for Design at University of Staffordshire, where I also teach across Automotive & Transport Design and Product, Furniture, Ceramics. As Course Director, I lead academic staff across a diverse range of courses including Architecture, Automotive & Transport Design, Fashion, Product Furniture Ceramics, Surface Pattern and MA Ceramics.
I am passionate about fostering collaboration between disciplines and regularly create opportunities for students to work together on live projects, competitions and industry partnerships.
With extensive industry experience developing products for some of the UK’s largest retailers, I have worked closely with manufacturers across Europe and Asia. This professional background informs my teaching, ensuring that students gain the skills and insights valued by employers.
I have led teams to design and develop new courses and modules that reflect evolving industry needs, and I have introduced a range of new technologies into the curriculum, including new CAD modelling software, VR and UX/UI content.
My research focuses on Emotional Design, exploring the relationships between people and products. My PhD led to the creation of the Emotional Design Deck, a tool developed to help designers and students integrate Emotional Design strategies into their creative practice. I am keen to collaborate with other researchers and practitioners to extend the tool’s design thinking principles into new contexts and disciplines.
http://danlewisdesign.com/
Academic qualifications
- PhD: The Emotional Design Deck: A new tool for Designers to develop meaningful and iconic furniture. University of Staffordshire
- PGChpe (Post-Graduate Certificate of Higher & Professional Education) University of Staffordshire
- BA (Hons) Product Design University of Staffordshire
- Senior Fellow Higher Education Academy
Expertise
- Emotional Design & User Experience
- Furniture Design & Development
- New Product Development (NPD)
- Manufacturing Processes & Material Innovation
- 3D Visualisation & CAD Modelling
- Concept Generation & Ideation
- Design Communication & Visualisation
- Sketching & Rapid Prototyping
- Sustainable Design Thinking
- Industry Collaboration
- Curriculum Development & Research-Led Pedagogy
Research interests
- Emotional Design
- Design education, pedagogy, and research-led teaching
- Cross-disciplinary collaboration and co-design methodologies
Publications
LEWIS, Dan (2020) An Introduction to Emotional Design, how to make people fall in love with your products. In: Staffordshire Innovation Enterprise Zone Webinar Series
LEWIS, Dan, MARTINEZ SANCHEZ, Maria, POWER, Jess and WEBB, David (2022) Designing Emotions: Strategies for Furniture Designers. In: Seventeenth International Conference on Design Principles & Practices (2023) Polytechnic Institute of Lisbon
Emotional Design Deck Student Workshop and Evaluation Event (2023) University of Staffordshire
LEWIS, Dan (2023) The Emotional Design Deck. In: University of Staffordshire Research, Innovation and Enterprise Conference 2023, University of Staffordshire
Emotional Design Deck Designer Workshop and Evaluation (Friday 14th July 2023) University of Staffordshire Creative Lab