The waste management company recently changed its collection vehicles from a two person vehicle that required one person to dump the contents of the trash can into the truck and the other to drive, to the automated version requiring only one person who drives and operates the collection arm. It makes sense from a cost perspective when the labor market is tight. However, the trucks are much bigger and are too big to navigate cul de sacs. So, the driver spends time going forward and backward to navigate the cul de sac and all the bends in the road.
When making decisions, it’s important to look at real life situations to see how well suited a product is for the user. Sometimes ideas look great on paper, but don’t fare well when it is put into real life conditions. Other times, when it is designed well, it takes off beyond expectations. And that’s the trick. Testing products to see how well they work for the end customer.