Industrial Design for High Speed Rail Systems in the USA, The Future is Ours to Envision

Cesar Vergara

President & Chief Designer

Vergarastudio

Ridgefield, Connecticut

High Speed Rail Systems are made up of multiple and complex building blocks

This

pqesentation

illustqates why

the building

block of

Industqial

Design can

have a

pqofound

effect on how

the

communities

and passengeqs

peqceive, use

and value the

investment in

High speed

qail

.

What is Industrial Design?

Industrial Design: The Mortar between Marketing and Engineering. A key element

in creating a cohesive HSR system

• ID is the “Envelope of Technologies” in a High Speed Rail system

• It is the architecture of the rolling stock that forges a bond between trainset, stations, infrastructure and ultimately the passenger.

• ID enhances engineering to create a human connection with the man made environment. It makes engineering appealing to all.

• As the “Skin’ of the project, ID bespeaks of the technologies and relates to the structures it envelopes.

• To be effective, Industrial design, like station Architecture, must be started

at an early stage of the project.

When creating a new High Speed system you don’t only have to think outside the box, you have to

create the box and all its building blocks

• What should the stations, bridges, catenary and rest of the infrastructure

look like? What visual message do you want these to convey?

• Local relevance in architecture is important, as is a cohesive system feel

• Critical for the passenger to recognize a HSR station building as a HSR

station

• “Branding” is something you do once you have a system in place.

• A brand or logo will only mean something if it represents something

visionary.

• The train is what most people think about when they think about train travel. High Speed train travel is no exception

The design of the trainset: Cornerstone of a visionary HSRS The appearance of the infrastructure: The pillar of the vision.

• A train systems emotional connection to the passenger is formed by a bond to the trains. An appealing train forms the better bond.

• Peoples hobbies are model trains, seldom model train stations.

• From switch boxes to bridges and stations, infrastructure imparts the sense of quality and reliability to the community.

• Building unattractive is as expensive as building attractive.

• Is the station a stationary train or the train a moving station? A visionary Industrial Design program can make the travel experience closer to seamless and forgettable (as in trouble free)

• Well designed infrastructure and trains. A coherent visions foundation.

Infrastructure must be attractive to all, including those that do not use the high speed line. The cost of manufacturing an attractive structure is the same as that of an unattractive one

Fact: The cost of a fleet of high speed trainsets constitutes a fraction of the total systems cost.

Fact: The investment in Industrial Design equalsless than 1/2% of the cost of the fleet of trainsets.

But it constitutes almost 100 % of the public perception.

Industrial Design is one of the least expensive components in the High Speed system with the greatest impact on its

perception by the public.

Proposed steps in developing visionary High Speed Rail Systems in the United States

• Establish exploratory focus groups. Gather the initial criteria, establish

customer needs & expectations. Remember the train is not personally yours, it belongs to the taxpayers and paying passengers.

• Establish a vision for the Trainset (and system). Create bullet item criteria

that define the desired effect, not the design direction. (ie. trainsets shall have an exciting color, not trainsets shall be red)

• Prepare ID concepts concurrent with the rolling stock specification. Approved concepts must be presented to the carbuilders, before award.

• Allow time for industry comment. Carbuilders bidding to build the same train, excelling in their technologies to build your train for your region.

• Industrial design is subordinate to engineering. It makes the last layer of

the system be on the passengers and railway employees side.

• The visionary train and system that is built results in one where the agencies, communities and industries voices were heard.

• The virtuous circle of good design, pride of ownership-good service-satisfied passengers, is set in motion.

Initial sets of sketches and ideas help create the first images to be evaluated by customer focus groups. Pictures of

existing systems are also benchmarked

Tighter illustrations of the concepts

And on to 3D modeling, trulyvirtual environments where the intersection between

engineering and ID yield the best of both.

Translated to 3D CAD Renderings

•

scale and 1:1 scale models and mock ups are produced, studied and

evaluated, in close consultation with structural and mechanical engineers

•

Images and animations that answer to the criteria, are then tested in customer focus groups to further refine the ideas, followed by full scale mock ups.

Reasons why an American HS Train look should differ from that of other countries:

• The FRA regs require the power car to have a stronger structure.

Configuring an exterior adapted to this structure yields an aerodynamic but different and uniquely American look.

• Trainsets cost about 30 million dollars each. At that price the appearance should be influenced by the buyer.

• High speed trains are part of the iconic imagery of different countries. The United States is entitled to its own appearance.

• Compliance to the ADA and flammability poses specific challenges to interior configurations that differ from Europe and Asia.

• Our stations will be unique, designed to improve the

neighborhood. Our trains should also be unique, designed to improve all the neighborhoods traversed

Industrial Design is one of the least expensive components in the High Speed system with the greatest impact on its

perception by the public.The Industrial Design of the trainsets and peripheral

furnishings in track side and station represent the whole system.

Competition will always be very strong. We need attractive trains!!

• The advent of High Speed Rail Systems in Asia

and Europe have had a culture changing effect, inside and outside their own borders.

• Most people within countries with HS rail systems can tell their own countries HS trains apart from others. Many outsiders can tell French, Spanish and Japanese and HS trains from other countries apart, even if they never visited those countries.

• Most people, frequent flyers included, have a hard time telling the difference between an Airbus and a Boeing!

• The visual power of high speed trains is extraordinary!

••

This cultural shift has transformed High Speed Trains into a new type of national

identifier and cultural icon.some examples:

France: Iconic images of culture, history and technology emerge, including one of the very French and attractive TGV and now the AGV

Germany: Iconic images of technology, strength and precision, and of course of their extraordinary

and very German HS trains

Japan: Iconic images of their architecture, technology, natural wonders and extraordinary

Japanese Shinkansen trains

Iconic Images of the United States: The space program, engineering wonders, and of a future high speed system

rivaling those of Europe and Asia.The look and presence of those yet to be designed HS trains, stations and infrastructure is what we will create. The future is ours to envision!.

(Notice the vacant rail track, soon to betraversed at high speed with our HST )

The future is ours to envision!