|Tomorrow's Trucks |
The new Volvo FH – a major challenge
for Volvo Trucks' designers
T
ruck design is about much more
than just color, shape and attractive lines. Behind the new, safer,
larger and more ergonomically optimized Volvo FH lies a significant design
challenge. "Coming up with solutions
where design and function go hand in
hand was one of our most important
tasks," says Rikard Orell, Design Director
at Volvo Trucks.
From the first stroke of his pen on the
drawing board to complete truck, the
process took just over five years. Several thousand hours and at least an equal
number of decisions and procedures later
it was finally ready – the new Volvo FH.
"The design challenge we were given
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was to create something that was exciting
and fresh, while at the same time retaining
and carrying over all those elements that
were so highly appreciated in the previous
model," relates Rikard Orell.
In practice what the Göteborg-based
design group had to do was to find solutions in which all the individual parts of the
truck interlinked smoothly with each other
and created a single cohesive feel. Every
visible surface, inside as well as out, was
examined in minute detail by the design
department. So too were the sounds and
tactile feel of the buttons and controls,
the structure of the textiles and the in-cab
lighting – all were tailored to meet the high
demands and expectations of an all-new
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April '13
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