The goal of this project is to provide interior and apparel design and merchandising undergraduate students, predominantly women, with a technologically superior, science-based education. To accomplish this goal, the Department of Design, Housing, and Merchandising (DHM) has redesigned the curriculum. For the science-based curriculum, new laboratory facilities are being used to teach science principles and to integrate textile testing of interiors and apparel products with coursework in product design, prototype production, and product testing and evaluation. A Computer Aided Product Testing Laboratory (CAPT Lab) has been developed to teach science concepts and to apply those concepts to major specific subject matter. Non-science-majors are increasing their intellectual science base and applying science-based critical thinking and problem solving to professional decision making. The project is significant because of its innovative use of an intellectual science underpinning and advanced technology to integrate product design with undergraduate laboratory research to explain product performance and product failure. Other universities have developed computer facilities or textile testing classes, but have not designed a curriculum that integrates computer design, prototype production, and product testing into the total educational experience. Major instruments include computer systems, textile product testing equipment, and industrial sewn product production equipment. Computer and mathematical applications include the statistical analysis of test results. Test results are linked to science-based explanations used to predict product performance. Product testing applications include testing tensile strength, dye stability, compression, resiliency, flammability, and soil resistance.
