Brian Burns

Research

Environmentally sustainable design and manufacture; ecodesign; obsolescence, wear-and-tear, and product life; form, colour and noise of products; ergonomic workstation design; masculinity and femininity (gender) in design activities; design education for high school students and engineers and associated professions; aids for design education.

Activities

Consulting: Computer Workstation Design EcoVu Analytics (Water Quality) Advisory Board Member (Education and Research), Design Exchange, Toronto Advisor, Curriculum for Technology Education, Ministry of Education and Training Member, Canadian Design Engineering Network Program Quality Assessor, Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, Ontario Associate of the Advanced Design and Manufacturing Institute – lecturing on Design and Ergonomics for Engineers for Queens University and University of Toronto Development of environmentally sustainable packaging guidelines for Nestle (Australasia) Canadian Foundation for Innovation Committee Member

Conference Publications

Brian Burns, “From Newness to Useness and back again – a review of the role of the user in sustainable product maintenance,” Maintaining Products in Use – EPSRC Network on Product Life Spans, Sep 2007.

Brian Burns, “Towards the better understanding of the implications of Product Life, Obsolescence, and value in the Use-Phase of Life Cycle Analysis,” Cycle 2007: 3rd Canadian forum on the Life Cycle Management of Products and Services, Oct 2007.

Brian Burns, “The Visual and Sensual Communication of Sustainability – A review of product and building design to promote appropriate sustainable user-responses,” Sustainable Innovation 07 – 12th international conference ‘Towards Sustainable Product Design’, Oct 2007.

Books

Brian Burns et al (2008), EcoSuss, 1st ed., Carleton University and Buschek Books, School of Industrial Design, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario K1S 5B6.