Contract furniture which is manufactured depending on the client&amp / #8217 / s design or specification requirements on a contract basis is executed in small and medium sized furniture companies in Turkey. This one-of-a-kind production organization provides component manufacturing opportunity to furniture SMEs via subcontracting. In this study, the use of design consultancy is investigated to understand how it should be used in the current organization, in order to implement this production system efficiently. This study also examines contract furniture production to have foresight for the development of furniture SMEs in Turkey. In a literature review, the generic context of contracting activities in relation to design activity is investigated. Methods of design consultancy use in product development processes are searched. Design consultancy in construction industry is examined Data about design and production capabilities of Turkish furniture SMEs is collected. Production planning processes of a contract furniture company was investigated and discussed in a case study. These two groups of data were compared in order to drive conclusions.

Increasing competition and technological improvements have created new challenges for the firms. In Turkey, low-tech small and medium scale furniture industry does not seem to be well equipped to compete in this respect due to their weak economic and cultural capital. Necessity of innovative and distinguishing design-led policies has already arisen for improving the position of the low-tech small and medium scale furniture producers. However, to generate effective policies for them, it is essential to understand the design process and production domain related to cultural factors which affect the position of design and the designer. Within this perspective, this thesis examines the position of design and the designer within the product development process in eight cases of small and medium scale furniture companies based on the data gathered from, firstly, in-depth interviews with the owners, and secondly, product development stories narrated by the owner, the designers and head of the production departments of the companies.