Engineering Design Method Using Quality Function Deployment (QFD) and the Pugh Matrix for Innovation of an Electric Clothes Drying Rack

Air-drying laundry indoors remains a persistent household problem in tropical climates such as Malaysia, where prolonged rainy seasons and space-constrained housing limit the effectiveness of conventional clothes racks. Most commercially available racks are simple mechanical frames that offer little beyond hanging space, and they cope poorly with humidity, odour and slow drying times. This study addresses the problem by applying two complementary engineering design tools, Quality Function Deployment (QFD) and the Pugh Matrix, to systematically translate customer requirements into a functional and manufacturable clothes-rack design. A structured questionnaire survey was administered to college students at Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM) to capture the Voice of the Customer (VOC). Nineteen candidate design attributes were ranked, and seven attributes with an importance score above 40% were carried forward into a House of Quality (HOQ) matrix to derive the corresponding engineering characteristics. Three conceptual designs were generated from the HOQ outputs and evaluated against a common baseline using the Pugh Matrix. Conceptual Design 3, featuring a combined hot-and-cold air fan, UV disinfection lamp, auto-cut-off timer, stainless-steel frame, castor wheels and a double-rod hanging space, achieved the highest net score (+5) and was selected for detailed development. The selected concept was subsequently modelled in SolidWorks to produce a dimensioned 3D prototype (800 mm x 1550 mm x 500 mm). The results demonstrate that integrating QFD with the Pugh Matrix provides a transparent, data-driven pathway from customer needs to a validated product concept, and the resulting design offers a practical, higher-functionality alternative to conventional clothes racks for space-constrained, humid environments.

Quality Function Deployment; Pugh Matrix; House of Quality; product design and development; clothes rack innovation

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