Braunschweig University of Art Show 2005

Transportation Design students from Braunschweig University of Art in Germany presented their work at the 2005 graduation show held in July. The show displayed final thesis projects as well as projects from the last term.

Graduating student Ingo Brueckmann presented an open roadster as his diploma project. The project work was done at Volkswagen Design, Wolfsburg, supported by Volke. Taking the concept of an open roadster to the extreme, this true sports car confronts its occupants with everything a dirt-track has to offer: dust, mud and flies in the teeth.The airstream enters the front end and is channeled across the engine bay directly into the cabin. The whole instrument panel acts as a single huge vent. The chassis is set up in a classical roadster layout - front engine and rear wheel drive, with the driver sitting close to the rear axle - crossbred with a higher ground clearance for driving offroad. It doesn't need a huge engine, relying instead on a good power-to-weight ratio to guarantee driving fun. Elements such as the rollcage are integrated into the design language of the body. The interior serves as the structural backbone of the car: this is illustrated by the center console diving under the hood, creating a powerdome on the surface. The cabin can be hosed down if things get messy. All these elements add up to a car that is designed to be used more like a piece of sports equipment than a common automobile.

Andreas Krueger proposed 'Skoda Allroad', which was developed at Skoda Design in Prague. The goal of the diploma project was to create an authentic show car for Skoda Auto which displays a desirable and emotional facet of the brand, while respecting Skodas strong rational values. The car's 'allroad genes' are based on the Czech passion for rally sports and historical rally cars like the Skoda 200 RS. It?s not about retro design - it's more about bringing out the spirit of these energetic cars and to influence todays mid-segment family car. The body sculpture provides both a muscular stance and elegant surfacing on a mildly modified package of the latest Octavia. The basis for the busy and advanced formal language can be found in the sumptuous and opulent bohemian architecture and crystal art. (For those that might think that the reversed C-pillar and the wraparound rear-window is too much of 'another brands character', check out the Skoda 1100 MBX ).

Other diploma students included:

- Andre Franco Luis, Volkswagen interior, supervised by Volkswagen

- Sascha Heyde, Volkswagen sports-tourer, done at Volkswagen Design, Wolfsburg, supported by Volke.

- Arne Everding presented 'Floped' a human-powered paddleboat with a bio-morphic propulsion system based on the flapping motion of a whale's tail. It was tested as a full-size prototype and will be displayed at the 'Magdeboot' fair in March 2006.

In addition to the diploma thesis projects, eight students presented 'Microcar' concepts for younger customers. The new EU driving licence 'class S' allows driving of certain cars from the age of 16 years. The vehicles must fulfill severe conditions: Maximum speed 45 km/h; maximum 50cc capacity with petrol-driven cars, diesel engines and electric motors may not perform more than 4 kW, the unloaded weight may not amount to more than 350 kilos. In cooperation with an automobile manufacturer, Transportation Design and Social Sciences students designed eight vehicle concepts during the last semester which were developed to 3D models and rapid prototypes made of plaster.

Falk Bruns presented Scrambler, which is aimed to give young people the feel of individual freedom. Driving the Scrambler means driving wherever you want through the jungle of urbanized space. It's a compact city car but special enough for cruising and showing up in front of the clubs. It offers the off-road-qualities like reliability and a bold appearance to take all your special shortcuts through town.

Joachim Hahn-Heinze proposed an Urban Mobility Concept, that despite its reduced size, ensures the passengers greatest possible protection. Following the motto, 'making security visible', special security features are expressed through the interior- and the exterior-design. The main characteristics are the front crash box and an interior that reduces the momentum of a collision during a car accident. It is made possible by means of a 'sledge system' to which the interior is attached.

In Braunschweig University of Art's research and teaching, the term design is not only restricted to classical product design but extended to the creation of services, systems, and user surfaces. Leading the department as a new field of activity at the university, Prof. Dr. St. Rammler has organised cooperation with several partners such as Volkswagen AG, the Institute for Mobility Research (BMW group), Daimler Chrysler institute of Futurology, Bugatti Veyron Interior designer Tomasz Bachorski and many more. The Diploma projects of Ingo Brueckmann, Andreas Krueger, Sascha Heyde and Arne Everding were supervised by Prof. J. Jaehnert.

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Braunschweig University of Art Show 2004

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