Empowering OSCAR Users with Freedom and Flexibility
Role
Product Design
Tools
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Adobe XD
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Adobe Illustrator
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Adobe Photoshop
Summary
OSCAR (Online Sustainable Conservation Assistance Resource) is a web application designed to guide architects and preservationists through the process of implementing sustainable improvements in existing buildings, while respecting significant character-defining features.
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To enhance the utility and user experience of OSCAR, I led a complete redesign focused on:
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Intuitive navigation
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Flexible project-driven workflows
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Presentation-ready report generation
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The Minimum Viable Product (MVP) of the redesigned OSCAR received overwhelmingly positive feedback from project stakeholders, architects, preservationists, and the APT committee funding the project.
About APT
The Association for Preservation Technology (APT) is the premier cross-disciplinary organization dedicated to promoting the best technology for conserving historic structures and their settings.
OSCAR wasn't living up to his full potential
The original OSCAR platform, while containing valuable databases of improvement solutions categorized by Preservation, Sustainability, and Inherently Sustainable Features (ISF), was underperforming due to usability issues. The platform used a multi-page form to guide users through selecting solutions for building component improvements and generating reports.
A thorough review of OSCAR's architecture, features, and workflows revealed key limitations:
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Inflexible Workflow: The prescribed workflow lacked the flexibility to customize collections based on user-defined characteristics. For instance, users couldn't easily compare solutions by price or category.
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Database Siloing: Only two of the three databases were integrated into the tool. The ISF database remained separate, preventing its data from being included in generated reports.
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Limited Report Generation: The report generation tool was functionally basic, producing unprofessional, barebones reports unsuitable for client presentations.
These critical issues, among others, necessitated a comprehensive redesign.
How OSCAR got his groove back
The redesign project commenced with a research and interview phase, focused on:
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Domain Familiarization: To gain a strong understanding of architectural sustainability, enabling informed discussions during user interviews.
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User Needs Discovery: To identify user project types, workflows, and objectives for the tool.
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I conducted interviews with four architects and preservationists sourced from project stakeholder networks. Using a questionnaire I developed as a guide, I led each interview, adapting as needed to capture the full range of user insights.
The interview data was then analyzed using affinity mapping to identify common themes and divergent needs. This analysis confirmed my initial hypothesis: users required tools to create customizable solution collections and presentation-ready reports tailored to the unique demands of each project.
While the OSCAR project also included the design of a new visual identity and marketing pages, this case study focuses exclusively on the tool itself.
To achieve this vision, I explored various architectures and workflows, ultimately settling on the following structure:
Empowering Users with Flexible Project Workflows
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I developed wireframes iteratively through ideation, prototyping, and stakeholder feedback. My aim was to create an intuitive and flexible workflow that offered project structure without enforcing a rigid model. Users gained the ability to create, name, and populate any number of collections for each building component, empowering them to tailor OSCAR to their specific project goals.
Key Features for Intuitive User Experience
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To ensure an intuitive user experience, I prioritized:
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Persistent Navigation: Providing quick and consistent navigation between collections, databases, and solutions, allowing users to move freely without losing their place or filter settings.
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Visual Orientation: Employing a unique UI color for each database, combined with prominent tabbed navigation, to ensure users were always aware of their location within the tool.
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Quality of Life Enhancements
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I also integrated several quality-of-life features to enhance user workflow and report generation, including:
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Building Profile: A dedicated section to capture essential building information like photos, location, and size.
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Progress Tracker: A visual indicator to encourage users to complete the building profile.
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Character-Defining Features: A designated area to record key architectural features to be preserved or restored.
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Climate Calculator: A tool to filter solutions based on building climate suitability.
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Drag-and-Drop Collection Management: Intuitive drag-and-drop functionality for organizing collections.
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Responsive Design: Optimized layouts for both desktop and mobile devices.
Enhanced Report Generation
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Project reports could be generated from customizable subsets of collections, providing maximum flexibility in reporting. Supplemental information from the building profile could also be incorporated. The redesigned reports featured a complete visual overhaul, incorporating professional formatting and a cover page generated from user-provided photography.
Reception
The OSCAR MVP received overwhelmingly positive feedback from project stakeholders, architects, and preservationists who previewed the tool, as well as the APT committee funding the project.
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While the next phase would have focused on expanding the databases for an alpha release, the project was unfortunately sidelined due to shifting priorities. However, OSCAR remains on APT's radar, evidenced by a presentation of the tool in 2022, though its future development remains uncertain.