Brit Insurance Design Of The Year 2011

Showcasing a year in design, the fourth annual Brit Insurance Design Awards are currently being previewed at the Design Museum in London, UK. The shortlist of over 100 items takes in the best in design from seven categories: Architecture, Transport, Graphics, Interactive, Product, Furniture and Fashion.

Naturally it is the Transport category we are most interested in, within which there are some very credible contenders for the overall title.

Representing the Automotive sector are nominations from GM, Fiat, Renault and Riversimple, all of which are going head to head against a plethora of variations of the common bicycle.

General Motors EN-V, or Electric-Networked Vehicle, is one such contender. Designed to meet the needs of urban commuters - at 1/3rd the size of a regular car - the EN-V is still able to accomodate two passengers as well as light luggage. Utilizing drive-by-wire technology and video game-esque interfaces, the EN-V is able to turn on its central axis. Networked connectivity allows the car to be driven autonomously. GM is confident that the integration of these sensing technologies will lead into future models by way of advanced safety systems.

Renault's nomination came in the form of the Dezir concept car. The car was nominated by Dale Harrow, Professor of Vehicle Design at the RCA, who said the DeZir was a "truly breathtaking piece of automotive sculpture, which connects the past with the future." The electric concept was designed around the human emotion of 'falling in love' and represents Renault's new vision of 'simple, sensuous and warm.' Boasting such features as a regenerative KERS style system, Kevlar body panels, asymmetric scissor doors and the powerful electric drivetrain, the DeZir "boasts all the expected attributes of a typical concept car".

Italian automaker Fiat were represented by the 500 MultiAir. The award winning car and engine combination has been selected because of its conscious outreaching to the vehicle's historic past. The twin cylinder engine, akin to the arrangement fitted to the 1957 500, is the most efficient and greenest engine built to date. The retro-chic exterior is an obvious nod toward the original and as Harrow professes, "in today's era of rising economic consciousness the Fiat 500 TwinAir goes back to its origins."

Riversimple, the start up British firm, were nominated for their fuel-celled city car by Mark Adams, managing director of Vitsoe. Riversimple's hydrogen city car is created using unique manufacturing techniques that allowed an increase in efficiency of over five-fold over traditional methods. Utilizing the hydrogen fuel cell results in the equivalent of over 300mpg and a well-to-wheel emission of just 31g CO²/km for the diminutive city car.

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By John O'Brien