Umea Institute of Design Degree Show 2001

Umeå, home to a large university with 25,000 students, is situated in northern Sweden, a short flight north from Stockholm, and 300km south of the Arctic circle.

The Umeå Institute of Design has been officially rated as the leading industrial design education in Sweden. The Design Institute offers a BA in Industrial Design, leading to MA programmes in Transportation Design, Advanced Product Design, and Interaction Design. All of the Masters programs are taught in English.

The school has support from a number of automotive and technology manufacturers, including Saab, Volvo Truck, Volvo Cars, Alfa Romeo, Ericsson, Nokia, ABB, Electrolux and Husqvarna, many of which are also strongly involved with the school's research programs.

The opening of the Degree Show on June 1 was accompanied by the second Design Managers Meeting, which aims to bring together leading industrial designers and new promising designers to meet each other. The Design Managers Meeting, the second in what is to become an annual event, was attended by designers, teachers and researchers from throughout Scandinavia, including senior designers from Saab Automobile, Volvo Cars, and Volvo Trucks.

The presentations started with an introduction from Bengt Palmgren, Head of the Institute, who outlined the research activities at the school, and gave an overview of design education in Sweden. He also announced the upcoming introduction of a PhD design program at the school. This was followed by an explanation of the ways the school is integrating new digital workflows into the education program, by Tomas Lindehell, Lecturer for the school's CAD and CAID studies.

The graduating students in the three MA streams: Transportation Design, Advanced Product Design and Interaction Design then made on-screen presentations of their projects at different venues around the school, showing the process of their design projects. This is something not usually seen at degree shows, and it certainly had the visitors busy, trying to keep up with all that was on show around the school!

Tanguy Prevot presented his Volvo branded fuel cell powered distribution truck, a proposal for the year 2015. The solutions used in the design reflect the situation and technology to be available at that time. His proposal featured detailed study on the layout made possible by new metal hydride fuel cell technology, as well as innovative solutions for vehicle load management, and safety features, including a cabin design to optimize visibility, and drive-by-wire systems to allow remote control of the vehicle, for reversing with safety. The styling theme is very architectural, and draws inspiration from modern graphic design, including the influence of web design. The theme is also intended to project a more pedestrian-friendly appearance, considering the role of the vehicle within urban areas.

The emphasis on a solid problem-solving approach to automotive design was very evident in this and several other projects, reflecting the influence of the Product Design and Interaction Design courses within the school.

Jakob Petersson presented a luxury Saab sport coupe, with the emphasis more on high style. His presentation showed the research into the historical brand development of Saab, and this was clearly a bold styling exercise, resulting in a dramatic vehicle with a very strong , and 'very Saab', character statement.

Conny Bengtsson showed 'Visual Safety', a concept for a compact Volvo estate. With inspiration from Volvo's strong estate and safety heritage, from the P180 ES to the V70, his concept is aimed at taking Volvo into a new market segment where style and carisma are just as important as safety and practicality.