Come see the Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) prototype this Friday, March 15, from 2 – 4 p.m. in the visitor’s parking lot on the Hillside campus.

In the fall term of 2010, Grad ID students were tasked to envision an improved Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) for the American Red Cross (ARC).

Andy Ogden, Chair of the Graduate Industrial Design Department, explains:

“The Red Cross is about delivering a sense of hope and helping people transition from disaster. They’re a very important part of the recovery process for people who’ve lost everything.

“When that truck shows up, it becomes a symbol of hope that somebody cares and is responding immediately. And so, redesigning the vehicle was a very important thing for the Red Cross because it’s the branding that makes their food chain work, helps raise donations, but it’s also the positive reaction they generate among the people they interact with.

“Our donation to the Red Cross was to help them rethink their design and how they do everything. We were able to work with the complexities of an organization that’s almost completely volunteers and affect change. So they used the design work that our students created to basically get all the troops to rally around the idea that they needed to replace something in an organization that was very, very sort of embedded in doing things the ‘good old way’ so we helped them with that change.”

Fast-forward 2 years and the American Red Cross is now testing two new prototype ERVs that will eventually replace the 300+ fleet nationwide. The new ERV designs were heavily influenced by the work done by our students. In addition to showing off the prototype, the American Red Cross will be honoring Art Center with its highest award of recognition during a presentation at 3 p.m. in the Ahmanson Auditorium.

– Anna Macaulay