Modul Frugal Engineering

Contents

• Principles and definitions of frugal innovation and engineering
• Case studies from emerging and developed economies
• Design methods for cost-reduction and simplification
• Life-cycle thinking and sustainability assessment
• Material and process selection for resource-efficient design
• Reverse engineering and re-engineering approaches
• Integration of circular economy principles into product design
• Project work on a real-world frugal design challenge (individual or group work)

By the end of the ´Frugal Engineering´ module, students will be able to:

• Explain the principles of frugal innovation and engineering, and differentiate it from conventional and low-cost design approaches.
• Describe the relationship between frugality, sustainability, and socio-economic development.
• Apply frugal design methods to identify opportunities for simplification, material reduction, and functional integration.
• Analyse design trade-offs among performance, cost, and sustainability under constrained conditions.
• Evaluate the feasibility of frugal solutions in diverse industrial and cultural contexts.
• Design and justify a frugal product or system prototype addressing specific user needs using minimal resources.
• Assess and communicate the environmental and economic impact of frugal solutions through a structured written report and oral presentation.