Having created two award-winning design solutions for business jets, the global design consultancy now convinces with a further trendsetting design for Embraer. The Brazilian manufacturer is one of the world's largest aircraft companies.
At this year's international aircraft show held in Atlanta by the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) from September 25th - 27th, BMW Group DesignworksUSA caused quite a stir with their groundbreaking design of a medium-range aircraft built by the Brazilian company Embraer. The innovative styling is the follow-up to the consultancy's two outstanding and successful design solutions created for the business jets Phenom 100 and 300 produced by Embraer. The awards given for these designs included the renowned iF Product Design Award 2007. Embraer is one of the world's largest aircraft builders.
"It was our desire to create the same trendsetting and sophisticated design as for the Phenom 100 and 300 aircraft," explained Verena Kloos, President of BMW Group DesignworksUSA. In addition to outstanding aesthetics, the concept was to provide a degree of comfort unparalleled in this segment and to exceed the expectations of the client and the end-consumer alike. "Our team carried out an in-depth investigation into modern living interiors and exclusive hospitality concepts in order to establish a genuinely new standard for the medium-range aircraft segment."
Innovative design concept: "Intelligent Luxury"
"Intelligent Luxury" is the name of the concept the team at BMW Group DesignworksUSA implemented for Phenom business jets. With this new design the consultancy went a step further and upgraded the standard for a medium-range aircraft built to carry passengers in comfort from the West Coast to the East Coast of North America. When developing this innovative styling, the designers stringently questioned the traditional conception of luxury. The consultancy realized that parameters associated with it in the past, such as opulence, hierarchy and symbolism, were no longer significant in a world that has become very complex. The holistic design strategy regards the interior of an aircraft as a space in which to relax and spend personal time freely. Therefore, new values such as connectivity, integrity and authenticity are conveyed.
Following the "Intelligent Luxury" strategy, various teams at BMW Group DesignworksUSA have created a lounge-like atmosphere for the interior of the medium-range aircraft, where generously sized windows convey a feeling of open space inside the cabin, in which passengers can move around in comfort standing upright. Moreover, completely newly designed seats provide an air of lightness and sensuality, rising above conventional lounge seats by featuring an elegant and comfortable body-contour design. Further innovations are the flexible, swing-out tables and the attractive entertainment area with a three-seat divan.
Storage spaces are discreetly concealed behind high-quality panels; these accentuating the distinctive, both stylishly puristic and becalming character of the overall design. Cabin and cockpit have been designed to form one single unit. The cockpit is equipped with aesthetic and concise state-of-the-art aviation technology. Large-size displays featuring advanced graphics are located in the center.
"The final design immediately conveys a feeling of unparalleled comfort and convinces through simplicity and sensual elegance," says Gerhard Steinle, Director of Transportation Design at BMW Group DesignworksUSA. "It surprises with intelligent design solutions and impresses with a discerning eye for detail." The range of colours and materials, which can indeed be associated with premium cars of the BMW Group, offers the client a varied choice of options. Here we also find innovative solutions that render the production process more efficient - a further positive asset.