Core77 Design Award 2011: Pengtao Yu; Student Winner, Runner-Up, Notable for Products / Equipment and Student Notable for Design for Social Impact
Posted in: Core77 Design Awards
Over the next months we will be highlighting award-winning projects and ideas from this year’s Core77 Design Awards! For full details on the project, jury commenting and more information about the awards program, go to Core77DesignAwards.com
Designer: Pengtao Yu
Location: Pasadena, CA, USA
Category: Products/Equipment and Design for Social Impact
Award: Student Winner, Runner-Up, Notable
Pengtao is a unique winner in the awards program. His projects earned multiple honors in two categories:
- U-Haul Emergency Response Conversion Kit, Student Winner for Products/Equipment
- U-Haul Emergency Response Conversion Kit, Student Notable for Design for Social Impact
- Tea-Time, Student Runner-Up for Products/Equipment
- Always Fresh Water Container, Student Runner-Up for Products/Equipment
U-Haul Emergency Response Conversion Kit
A conversion kit designed for American Red Cross that quickly converts a U-Haul rental truck into temporary Emergency Response Vehicle when a catastrophe happens. The converted vehicle can be used on disaster relief operations to provide stationary feedings and distribution of food and water.
This project was from an education partnership between Art Center College of Design and American Red Cross (ARC). ARC came to us last fall simply asked us to redesign their Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) since they are about to renew their fleet. I started the project by talking to the volunteers who works on ERVs, talking to ARC staff who maintain the fleet, visiting the ARC operation centers, observing the EVR in a mission at a shelter and visiting a ERV manufacturer. Based on the thorough understanding of all the needs from these stakeholders, I realized that what they need might not be a new vehicle but only something that gives them the ability to bring food to the victims after a major disaster. Therefore I came up the U-haul Conversion Kit idea along with other two ideas. Then I presented these solutions to ARC’s executives, staff and volunteers. The U-Haul Conversion Kit idea was extremely well received. Therefore, I chose the concept and further developed it.
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