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PRESS RELEASE
Pasadena, CA - May 20, 2015
Bold Visions of Future Cars Emerge from SABIC-Sponsored
Transportation Design Competition at Art Center College of Design
Jaw-dropping, shape-shifting concepts explored consumer needs ranging from high-speed commuting
and off-road adventuring to urban mobility and public transport
SABIC and Art Center College of Design have announced the winners of a three-month long competition
focused on designing an innovative vehicle for Generation Alpha, anyone born after 2010. The SABICsponsored project, known as Design for Alpha, challenged Transportation Design students, to come up with
bold, forward-thinking ideas on the types of vehicles that best meet the needs of this new generation, while
offering a possible glimpse of where the automotive design industry may be headed by 2030 and beyond.
Among the most jaw-dropping outcomes were the Hotspot Urban Base, a shape-shifting polyhedron 3D
created vehicle with a giant, flexing ‘live hinge’ door; the ultra-aerodynamic efficient Air Runner designed for
fully autonomous high-speed, long-range commuting; and the Transit Integrated Motive or TIM, a luxury
transport system of customized pods with a shared platform for private owners or public use.
Students drew inspiration from SABIC’s broad range of thermoplastic materials and solutions for the
automotive industry, as well as the company’s insights and understanding of developments and trends in
automotive design and production.
The jury, which included 14 professionals from seven major OEM design studios (Ford, General Motors,
Mazda, Nissan, Subaru, Tesla Motors and Volkswagen), chose John McCarthy as the overall winner. Eric Sun
and Axel Kurkjian finished second and third, respectively. All three students presented highly imaginative
concepts and demonstrated innovative uses of plastics. SABIC awarded McCarthy, Sun and Kurkjian with
scholarships valued at $5,000, $3,000 and $1,000.
“We were delighted with the high caliber of the designs submitted and inspired by the students’ creativity,” said
Scott Fallon, general manager, automotive, SABIC’s Innovative Plastics business. “In Design for Alpha, their
imaginations went into overdrive as they embraced the design freedom of thermoplastics and opened their
minds to new shapes, functions and all kinds of possibilities. We hope this experience has helped these young
designers – future leaders within our customers’ design studios – understand that it can be very powerful when
they’re thinking about material and process from the early stages of any creative project.”
“Integrating material and process with design was an invaluable learning experience for our students,” agreed
David O’Connell, Art Center instructor and former chief designer for Mitsubishi Motors of North America. “A
designer needs to think about how any idea or concept will actually come to life, so it’s important to explore
what types of materials and processes are needed for new product development. Keeping these
considerations front of mind early on during the evolution of a vehicle is crucial to success.”
“The best professional designers embrace opportunities to connect with companies like SABIC who are
pushing innovation through advanced technologies,” said Stewart Reed, chair of Art Center’s Transportation
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Design department. “I’m thrilled that our collaboration with SABIC mirrored this vital interaction and produced
important knowledge that was applied to the creative process.”
“Our students were able to draw inspiration from a company deeply steeped in advanced materials and
chemistry as well as experienced in working with major design studios and engineering groups,” he continued.
“The students went through the same cycle, the same steps and the same research as they would in a realworld design studio and that’s exactly the quality educational experience we strive to deliver at Art Center.”
The project resulted in a diverse selection of approaches. No two concepts were alike with the students
interpreting the needs and desires of Generation Alpha in different ways. Though autonomous driving was a
common theme, the concepts differed considerably – from vehicles designed for high-speed commuting and
off-road adventuring to those designed for urban mobility and public transport.
First Grand Award
John McCarthy’s model, the Hotspot Urban Base (HUB), is built upon the idea that Gen Aers will be more
immersed in technology and have higher expectations for connectivity than any other generation. As such, this
autonomous vehicle merges the digital and physical lives of its three passengers into one simple environment
and allows for engaging digital experiences. The flexible design allows for its polyhedron 3D structure to morph
into an almost infinite number of shapes and different levels of stiffness, similar to muscle fibers pulling and
contracting as a skeletal structure. Thermoplastic materials allow freeform 3D-printed lithium ion batteries to be
mounted into the vehicle’s fenders, allowing them to become cooling surfaces. Ultra-lightweight polymers
create the ability to have a giant, flexing ‘live hinge’ door, providing very easy access to the front and rear
seating areas. Ultra-soft, flexible shape memory polymers create personally customized interior spaces for the
three passengers.
McCarthy’s win didn’t come easily. Four weeks into the project, he broke his sketching hand while replacing the
oil pan gasket on his 1972 BMW 2002. His hand was set in a cast for the next five weeks. Though he could not
sketch, he used that time to develop a well thought-out and well researched concept, which clearly paid off in
the eyes of the jury.
Second Grand Award
Eric Sun’s Air Runner concept, with its dual-mode design and fully autonomous driving option, is intended for
high-speed, long-range commuting. The layout and surging structural form enables excellent aerodynamics.
Sun incorporated many uses of plastics, including shape memory polymers to allow the body to conform to
aerodynamic efficiencies. Electrochromic plastics allow the cabin to blend into the upper body for a private and
seamless aesthetic, and the upper body can switch back again from a solid color for privacy to a clear
transparent for enhanced visibility. Thermoplastic composites make possible a stronger, light body and also
allow for the use of one larger door for entering and exiting the vehicle.
Third Grand Award
Axel Kurkjian’s luxury transport system, the Transit Integrated Motive (TIM), is a fully autonomous vehicle and
shared transportation platform that can be owned privately or made accessible to the public. Individual pods
are available for single passengers as are larger pods for two to four passengers. Advanced reinforced plastics
are used for the vehicle frame and other structures, while polycarbonate materials are used to help enable full
touch screen interaction capability and external displays. The pod interiors are customized through 3D printing.
Additional Awards
SABIC also presented two $500 Art Center scholarships. Iljung Jeong received the Design Leadership award
for his strong work ethic, proactive nature and eagerness to apply what he had learned. Jaesung Kim was
recognized with the Vehicle Emblem award for creating the winning Design for Alpha logo, which was a
competition among all students.
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Design for Alpha Jury
Jurors for the competition were Freeman Thomas, Jeremy Leng, Jordan Meadows and Lon Zaback from Ford;
Frank Saucedo and Heidi Bliss from General Motors; Jacques Flynn from Mazda; John Sahs from Nissan;
Masahikio Kobayashi and Matthew Wherry from Subaru; Lauren Szczesny from Tesla; Jae Min from
Volkswagen; Ruben Perfetti from Gulfstream Aerospace; Scott Fallon and Geert Schellekens from SABIC and
Stewart Reed from Art Center.
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NOTES TO EDITORS
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SABIC and brands marked with ™ are trademarks of SABIC or its subsidiaries or affiliates.
High-resolution photos are available upon request
SABIC should be written in every instance in all uppercase
ABOUT SABIC
Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) ranks as the world’s second largest diversified chemical company.
The company is among the world’s market leaders in the production of polyethylene, polypropylene and other
advanced thermoplastics, glycols, methanol and fertilizers.
SABIC recorded a net profit of SR 23.3 billion (US$ 6.2 billion) in 2014. Sales revenues for 2014 totalled SR
188.1 billion (US$ 50.2 billion). Total assets stood at SR 340 billion (US$ 90.7 billion) at the end of 2014.
SABIC’s businesses are grouped into Chemicals, Polymers, Fertilizers, Metals and Innovative Plastics. It has
significant research resources with innovation hubs in five key geographies – USA, Europe, Middle East, South
East Asia and North East Asia. The company operates in more than 50 countries across the world with around
40,000 employees worldwide.
SABIC manufactures on a global scale in Saudi Arabia, the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific.
Headquartered in Riyadh, SABIC was founded in 1976 when the Saudi Arabian Government decided to use the
hydrocarbon gases associated with its oil production as the principal feedstock for production of chemicals,
polymers and fertilizers. The Saudi Arabian Government owns 70 percent of SABIC shares with the remaining
30 percent held by private investors in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
ABOUT INNOVATIVE PLASTICS
SABIC’s Innovative Plastics business is a leading, global supplier of engineering thermoplastics with an 80-year
history of breakthrough solutions that solve its customers’ most pressing challenges. Today, Innovative Plastics
is a multi-billion-dollar company with operations in more than 35 countries and approximately 9,000 employees
worldwide. The company continues to lead the plastics industry with customer collaboration and continued
investments in new polymer technologies, global application development, process technologies, and
environmentally responsible solutions that serve diverse markets such as Healthcare, Transportation,
Automotive, Electrical, Lighting and Consumer Electronics. The company’s extensive product portfolio includes
thermoplastic resins, coatings, specialty compounds, film, and sheet. Innovative Plastics (www.sabic-ip.com) is
a wholly owned subsidiary of Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC).
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PHOTO CAPTION
Art Center College of Design student and California native John McCarthy poses by his Hotspot
Urban Base concept, a shape-shifting polyhedron 3D-created autonomous vehicle. Judges from
major automotive design studios chose McCarthy’s concept as the overall winner of the recent Design
for Alpha competition. The project, sponsored by SABIC’s Innovative Plastics business, challenged
students to come up with bold, forward-thinking concepts for vehicles that would best meet the needs
of Generation Alpha, anyone born after 2010.
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Innovative Plastics Media Contacts
David Cameron
E: [email protected]
T: +1-248-926-4219
Agency Media Contacts
Griff McNerney
E: [email protected]
T: +1-617-520-7106
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