Today’s society is characterised by the production of massive amounts of information— freely transferred—and instant access to knowledge. This current overproduction of data is translated into complex diagrams to enhance the clarity. Nevertheless, it is commonplace in information design practice to find diagrams that are not communicating the intended messages. The act of conceiving the diagram takes place during conceptual design. This can be where misleading analysis and superfluous information organisation actions may lead to ill-conceived conceptual design, and therefore to ill-conceived diagrams, i.e. overloaded, unintelligible and disorganised. Existing tools for conceptual design of diagram creation do not properly meet design practitioners’ needs in that they tend to be excessively time-consuming to implement. This indicates a need for the exploration of new design methods focused specifically on the conceptual design stage of the process of designing diagrams. This practice-led thesis presents one such possible design method, i.e. MapCI Cards, aimed at guiding experienced graphic and information design practitioners in the preparation of complex diagrams. MapCI Cards presents a collection of guidelines that make use of prompts and questions, in order to assist the conceptual design stage of diagram creation. The use of the proposed design method does not guarantee the production of outstanding outputs. The purpose of MapCI Cards is not to create aesthetic design; rather, it is to increase an understanding through guided content analysis and organisation of the information to be conveyed. Lists, draft diagrams, mind-maps and sketches are some of the possible resulting outputs of using the MapCI Cards. In short, the cards assist the development of the conceptual idea of the potential final diagram that will be developed in the prototype design stage. The first stage of this research investigates how complex diagrams organise information, using the London Underground diagram as a case study. Analytical relational surveys are used to explore diagram creators’ decision-making processes. Sets of studies of diagram structures (Walker, 1979a; Tufte, 1983), design processes (Wurman, 1989; Jones, 1992) and information organisation (Wurman, 2001; Shedroff, 2003; Roam, 2008) are examined and combined. After this, the data collected are analysed using qualitative visual methods, and rearranged to develop the content in MapCI Cards. Two pilot workshops are designed as the revising and optimising methods. Then, five self-documentation cases drawn from practising information designers in the UK are conducted to test MapCI Cards within professional practice. The performance of the proposed guided approach to conceptual design is measured through an interpretation model, and key informants’ insights are used to delimit its conditions and limitations.

Workplace accidents in Sweden have in recent years increased. Companies are at the same time putting a greater emphasis on preventing accidents and inform about safety and risks. Therefore there is a need to know how to visualize this safety information. This study is based on a part of a project proposed by the industrial company AB Wahlquists Verkstäder, in which they want to visualize their safety information for new employees and existing staff, and also for temporary contractors and apprentices. The purpose of this study is to see what is required of the visualization of safety information and what guidelines that should be followed. The focus is divided into two areas. One area concerns the safety information focusing on warning signs and safety symbols. The other area concerns what requirements and guidelines that applies specific to the visualization of safety information in an industrial environment. The study includes literature studies, and a case study focusing on the company AB Wahlquists Verkstäder. Interviews and testing of developed prototypes were conducted with staff at the company. The analysis shows that there are several factors that should be considered when visualizing safety information. It is important that the information is clear. This clarity can be achieved in various ways, for example by the use of bright colors, signal words or lighting. These guidelines also apply for visualization specifically for the industrial environment at AB Wahlquists Verkstäder. However, additional emphasis should be given to delaying habituation. Materials should also be carefully considered. New thinking and fresh ideas is something that is appreciated by the staff and that should be included in the visualization. It is questionable whether additional companies should have been included in the case study to enhance the generalization of the study. It can also be discussed if the interviews and prototype testing should have included a higher number of subjects. It can also be discussed if the testing should have been conducted in the actual work environment, instead of in a secluded office. / Arbetsplatsolyckorna i Sverige har de senaste åren ökat. Samtidigt lägger företag större vikt vid att förebygga olyckor och informera om säkerhet och risker. Därmed finns det ett behov av att veta hur säkerhetsinformationen ska visualiseras. Denna studie bygger på en del av ett uppdrag från industriföretaget AB Wahlquists Verkstäder, där de vill visualisera sina säkerhetsföreskrifter för nyanställd och befintlig personal, men även för tillfälliga entreprenörer och praktikanter. Syftet med denna studie är att se vilka krav som ställs på visualiseringen av säkerhetsinformation och vilka riktlinjer som också bör följas. Fokus ligger på två delar, dels på säkerhetsinformation med inriktning på varningsskyltar och säkerhetssymboler, men också på vad som är specifikt för visualisering av säkerhetsinformation i en industrimiljö. Under arbetet genomfördes litteraturstudier, samt en fallstudie med fokus på företaget AB Wahlquists Verkstäder. I fallstudien genomfördes intervjuer med befintlig personal och testningar av framtagna prototyper. Analysen visar att det finns flera faktorer som bör övervägas då säkerhetsinformation ska visualiseras. Det som är allra viktigtast är att informationen ska vara tydlig. Denna tydlighet kan uppnås på flera olika sätt, bland annat genom användning av starka färger, signalord eller belysning. När det gäller visualisering specifikt för industrimiljön på AB Wahlquists Verkstäder gäller dessa riktlinjer också. Däremot bör extra tyngd läggas vid att bland annat fördröja tillvänjningen, då många i personalen stannar på företaget i många år. Materialval bör också noga tänkas över, då det exempelvis finns oljedimma i verkstadslokalen som kan förstöra pappersark som sitter uppe för länge. Nytänkande och fräscha idéer är något annat som uppskattas av perosnalen och som bör vävas in i visualiseringen. Det kan diskuteras om ytterliga företag borde tagits med i fallstudien för att höja generaliseringen på studien. Det kan också diskuteras om intervjuerna och prototyptestningarna skulle innefattat ett högre antal testpersoner och om testningarna också borde utförts i sin rätta miljö, istället för endast i ett avskiljt kontor.