Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 1

Consumers are increasingly likely to turn to the internet for purchases. One of the key issues for onlineshopping for businesses, is the high return rate due to customer dissatisfaction. Therefore, product suppliers areincreasingly trying to develop new tools to ensure the customer has the most accurate information possiblebefore they make a purchase, to minimize this costly issue. The current application is to develop such a tool forfurniture providers, to provide potential customers as accurate a picture as possible of how purchased itemswill look in their space. The applicants plan to develop a product configuration tool that will run over theinternet and allow customers to select a product with a limited number of configurable options, starting withsofas where the leg and arm styles can be changed, sectional components can be arranged and different fabricsand finishes can be applied. Industry partner ViewIT ultimately hopes to provide the fully customizable optionfor clients to view the sofa as a 3D model in a mockup of the room in which it will be placed. The tool will beuseful for furniture providers, to promote online shopping and planning, to maximize the customer shoppingexperience, while minimizing costs associated with returns and consumer dissatisfaction.