BMW DesignworksUSA opens design studio and lab in China

The opening of the design studio was announced back in April 2011, and has been followed by the inauguration of a Connected Drive Lab, a new global development center that joins the ones in Munich and Mountain View/California.

The new design studio will bring insights from the Chinese market to further inform DesignworksUSA’s global perspective, provide entry into the Asian market for its European and North American clients, and bring new international client partnerships and opportunities to the region.

“Our new studio in Shanghai places DesignworksUSA at the epicenter of the most rapidly growing and influential consumer market in the world and provides an indispensible resource for shaping our global perspectives for clients”, says Laurenz Schaffer, President of BMW Group DesignworksUSA.

“As innovators, there’s tremendous insight for DesignworksUSA to gain in China, and likewise great opportunity to contribute to the evolution of this vibrant culture”, Schaffer continues.

“Creating this foothold for both BMW Group Design and DesignworksUSA in Shanghai is of great importance from both strategic and creative standpoints”, says Adrian van Hooydonk, Director BMW Group Design.

“China’s importance from a business perspective to BMW Group is clear, its power to inspire our designers is equally vital.”

The DesignworksUSA Shanghai Studio will perform functions including product, transportation, automotive, environmental and interaction design; color, material and finish design; design communication, research and strategy; sustainability consulting.

Its staff will consist of a balance between designers from the region and those from DesignworksUSA’s studios in Los Angeles, Munich and Singapore.

The new ConnectedDrive Lab is dedicated to advanced functions in the areas of convenience, infotainment and safety especially for Chinese customers.

“It’s exciting to lead a young, interdisciplinary team in China as part of a global development network”, says Alexis Trolin, Head of BMW Group ConnectedDrive Lab China.

“As a megacity, Shanghai is a significant global location for innovations and trends. It’s a city where groundbreaking impulses are generated for design, mobility and the key technologies of the future.

“After short ramp up phase, our team of 25 highly qualified and motivated developers, User Interface Concept designers and software experts, we are launching the first innovative functions designed by Chinese engineers especially for Chinese Customers.”

(Source: BMW)