Beginning in September, 2011, the School of Design is offering a Master of Design (Design Practices) degree within the Master of Design scheme that will focus on transportation design issues in China and the growing economies of Asia.
The aim of this 10-month program is to familiarize students with the emerging trends and issues that are having an impact on the design and planning of transportation in the urban, suburban and rural environments in the most rapidly growing region in the world. They will be tasked to anticipate the implications of these trends and issues with regard to the practice of Transportation Design in the future and come to understand how they as designers will contribute to the design of mobility solutions.
Students will use a variety of research methods for gathering design centric data relevant to transportation planning and recent societal developments in Asia. Regional case studies in China will be used as effective tools in learning and teaching for this subject. Major issues like government policies, economic, cultural, social and managerial systems will be explored for their significance in affecting transportation planning strategies.
The program begins in September with a series of workshops taught by experienced transportation designers; featuring lectures and presentations about transportation issues- the history, evolution, technology and future scenarios of mobility. The program will conclude with the Capstone project- a semester long, self generated project that is China centric and relevant to emerging transportation markets there.
Recent graduates of Transportation Design Programs, designers seeking a new career direction, employees of companies with a presence in China, or those seeking knowledge about the state of transportation design in the most dynamic economy in the world are invited to apply by May 2nd, 2011. The cost of tuition for this 10 month program is HK$108,500 with successful graduates awarded a Master of Design degree.
More about MDes (Design Practices)>>
For enquiries:
Martin Smith, Chair Professor of Industrial Design
sdmartin@polyu.edu.hk
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About The Teaching Team
Professor Tak LEE, excelled in his career at IAD in the United Kingdom, where he gained extensive experience in strategic, industrial, product and transport design. He has won numerous local and international awards and was the designer of Peifan Lucky Star, China’s first real ‘family car’. He later initiated the MyCar project, which transformed into Hong Kong’s first car company ever. He is also the leader of the Transport Design and Strategic Design Labs at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s School of Design .He is a graduate of Central Saint- Martins in London.
Chair Professor Martin SMITH, former Chair of Product Design at the Art Center College of Design, served as the Vice President of automotive projects at Designworks in the USA. While there he undertook projects for Mazda, Corvette, Subaru, Chrysler and Magna International, among others. He is a highly awarded designer and inventor with numerous international patents and licensed products. He is also an accomplished publisher, design competition judge and holds high academic position at the University.
Fred HAN, Assistant Professor, has held positions as Senior Designer with Ford and General Motor in the United States, and as Product Design Consultant at Philips Design in Hong Kong. He holds academic functions and has won several prestigious international design awards. His creativity paired with his multi-cultural automotive and product design background is a great asset to the team. Fred is a graduate of the Art Center College of Design.
Urs STEMMLER, Visiting Lecturer, is the former Assistant Chief Designer for highline and commercial vehicles at Citroën Design in France. He then became the General Manager at Milai Corp., a premium automotive design consultancy in Japan. He has an international automotive background; holds many patents and shares his experience in academic functions and is a graduate of Art Center/Europe in Switzerland.
