Industrial Designer Creates Off-Road Ambulance Trailer for Ukrainian Medics
Posted in: UncategorizedIndustrial designer Piotr Tluszcz, who’s based in Cracow, Poland, co-founded a utility trailer company 11 years ago. More recently, as he watched the conflict unfold in neighboring Ukraine, he realized the terrain there provided a challenge for Ukrainian medics. Tluszcz then designed the Life Chariot, an off-road ambulance trailer, and had his company Da Orffo produce a pair.
“The Life Chariot [is] a MEDEVAC off-road ambulance that can attach to any hook-equipped vehicle. The vehicle’s low weight and suspension makes it safer for a casualty to travel in than the boot of a car. The interior of the upper body provides space for rescuers to attend to the injured person while driving from the front line to the nearest medical point. The vehicle’s construction is repairable in frontline conditions. The adjustable drawbar allows the trailer to be quickly adapted to any vehicle, and can be quickly re-coupled if the towing vehicle fails.”
“The evacuation trailer consists of a Da Orffo off-road suspension designed for high speeds thanks to gas-adjustable coilover dampers and longitudinal rocker arms. The upper module is a protective steel cage that is covered with a fireproof tarpaulin that opens at the sides and rear. Inside the upper module there are guides for easy loading and securing the NATO-standard stretcher. On the sides are two strapped seats for rescuers or the more lightly injured. The body also contains two airtight boxes and a roof rack for additional medical equipment.”
“The initial two builds have been given to the Ukrainian Medical Military Unit and the Polish Voluntary Medic Unit of Damian Duda ‘W Miedzyczasie’ Foundation, having been tested in terrains such as mountain trails, forests, caves and mines.”
“Piotr is continuing to implement upgrades to The Life Chariot based on feedback received from medics working on the front line. He is also working on adapting the vehicle for mountain rescue purposes.”
Tluszcz and the Life Chariot won the 2023 James Dyson Award in the Humanitarian category.
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