2013 Pilkington Design Awards winners announced

Royal College of Art Vehicle Design graduates Nir Siegel and Ian Slattery have taken top honors at the 26th annual Pilkington Vehicle Design Awards, held at the RCA in London.

Jaguar designer Earl Beckles presented the award for Best Design Interpretation to Siegel for his Audi Genesis project, a vehicle that builds itself using 3D printing technology to the user's specifications, providing a new kind of owner experience. Beckles said that Siegel's idea was fresh and innovative, while also carrying an interesting story and development process.

Slattery's Vitreo project, developed in collaboration with Textiles student Moira McAulay, picked up the award for Best Use of Glazing. His project explored the idea of how we will view the concept of luxury in the future, and how we can change our perceptions through the use of different materials. Ajay Panchal, founder of PanchaL and former Nissan senior designer, presented Slattery with the award, praising his great integration of interior and exterior and the story behind the project.

A special commendation was also presented this year, celebrating the Best Design Interpretation. Samuel Johnson was recognized for his project, Sodalis, which looks at how we can create a car that has the ability to grow with us through changing surface aesthetics. David Wilkie, design studio director at Mia Electric, said that the project had real value because it showed that although cars have to be perfect in order to sell, not all beautiful things need to be brand new.

The shortlisted students presented their designs to a judging panel that included directors and managers in design, research and development as well as product management from NSG Group and Jaguar Land Rover.

Mike Greenall, director of Automotive Research and Development Programs at NSG Group said, "The caliber of this year's entrants has been astounding and the students at RCA have surpassed our expectations.

"With the increased pressure to produce economical, environmentally-friendly designs has led the students to identify innovative glazing and innovative design that are set to shape the future of the automotive industry. By doing this they have shown that they have vast amounts of creativity and there is no doubt they will be very successful in the future".

Look out for our full report from the RCA's end-of-year show, coming next week.

By Rufus Thompson