Matthew Lam – Design Portfolio

I still hold all of the values that I mentioned in this video, and have continued to apply them in my design work. In addition to these values, I have also developed a value of 'simplicity' through my work on my Praxis, and after having more time to reflect on my past projects. Below is a brief recap on my most important current values and how they relate to my approach towards engineering design.

• Discipline & diligence: To me, discipline involves doing things that are necessary, but may seem tedious or uninteresting. For example, discipline is involved in using credible engineering tools to challenging basic assumptions, rather than just going by intuition or 'common sense'. I think discipline goes hand-in-hand with diligence, which consists of working attentively and in a detailed way. Diligence applies, for example, when fulfilling my due diligence as an engineer when researching stakeholders for an engineering design project.

• Curiosity & learning: I'm a student engineer, but I'm also an engineering student.  I also believe that even when dealing with a topic that I know well, there could always something more for me to learn about it to unlock another layer of understanding.

• Teamwork: I've witnessed how teamwork brings together multiple perspectives, often leading to more comprehensive and improved design work. In addition to this, I value the exchange of knowledge and skills that can occur through teamwork. I've found that working with people with different skillsets from mine helped me develop new skills and knowledge in a way that would not have been possible if I were simply working alone.

• Simplicity: I see 'simplicity' in engineering design as making situations more 'straightforward' to navigate, and using tools to think clearly despite a task being complex. Throughout my past work to date, I found that multi-faceted projects have so many variables, and I found myself getting easily overwhelmed. I've found it really valuable to break down a large task into simpler sub-tasks, or to frame the task in a way that allows me to focus on essential ideas before worrying about details.

My position and values influence the way I approach my design work, and in turn, the learnings I draw from my work continually influence my position as well. You will see examples of this throughout this portfolio.

Portfolio Overview

In keeping with my value of simplicity, I've decided to structure my portfolio sequentially, starting with my Praxis I project and ending with my Praxis I project. At the bottom of each page, there will be a button linking to the next page in the sequence. I intend for this to create a straightforward progression through the different pages of this website, that makes the information easier to follow and less overwhelming to absorb. However, the top menu bar is always available if wish to navigate to a specific page. Below is a map of the different pages within my portfolio. 

Each CTMF page is tagged with one or more strands of Framing, Diverging, Converging or Representing which reflect the strands most relevant to that page.

The projects are also tagged with discipline & diligence, curiosity & learning, teamwork or simplicity, which reflects examples of when I enacted these values from my position, or when an experience from my work contributed to forming these aspects of my position.