Design is probably one of the fastest growing sectors in the Indian economy and we are witnessing an exponential economic opportunity especially in the field of Automotive Technology.

The challenges to the automotive industry present tremendous opportunities for automotive designers. The automotive scenario has changed a lot today. An automobile is perceived as an object of desire representing a lifestyle or as someone has said “a car is the largest garment one can wear”. In today’s fiercely competitive market, it becomes imperative to have differentiation in products and this is where designers come in. Styling is one powerful approach in creating this differentiation for different market segments. The PIP was open to industry professionals, faculty and students for whom the word “Automobiles” means “Passion”.

The programme was inaugurated by Prof. Dhimant Panchal (Director - MIT Institute of Design), Dr. K. C. Vora (Dy. Director & Head, ARAI Academy, ARAI )  and Prof. Gaurang Shah (Head - Transportation Design Dept., MIT Institute of Design) followed by welcome address by Dr. Vora.

Sessions were conducted by distinguished speakers from ARAI, MITID™ and Industry on various topics as mentioned below

1. Vehicle Engineering Design Process, by Dr. K. C. Vora, Dy. Director & Head, ARAI Academy, ARAI 
2. Ground Vehicle Aerodynamics, by Mr. Sandeep Shetty, Technology Specialist , Ansys
3. Structural Analysis of Vehicle Body, by Mr. Ashok Khondage, Technology Specialist , Ansys
4. Automotive Safety, by Mr. A. V. Mannikar, Head - PSL & SHL, ARAI
5. Composites in Automotive Sector, by Mr. Nachiket Thakur, Head - Innovation Center and GM - Product Design & Development, Mahindra Composites
6. Virtual Validation for Commercial Vehicle Cab and Bus Body, by Mr. A. R. Joshi, Dy. Director & Head, CAE Laboratory, ARAI

1. Design cases - Special Utility and Public Transport, by Ms. Reboni Saha/Mr. Ashish, Mozaic Design, Goa
2. Introduction to Design, by Prof. Gaurang Shah, Head - Transportation Design Dept., MITID™
3. Case Studies, by Mr. Chandrashekhar Vyavhare, Founder Director & Principal Designer, Futuring Design Pvt. Ltd
4. Introduction to Design Process, by Prof. Dhimant Panchal, Head-Pre Design Foundation & Director-Design Center, MITID™, followed by hands on assignment work on Simple Product Design.

1. Styling Trends, by Mr. Saurabh Singh, Group Head - Design Studio, Maruti Suzuki India
2. Styling of Off Highway Vehicles, by Mr. Satish Komaragiri, Head – Design, Automotif
3. Case Studies on Styling, by Mr. Sandeep Karyakarte, Head- passenger car design, Tata Motors
4. Introduction to Design Research and Case Study, by Mr. Ripul Kumar, Director, User Research & Innovation Kern Communications Pvt. Ltd
5. Vehicle sketching as a tool of Ideation, by Prof. Gaurang Shah followed by assignments on vehicle sketching

1. Perceived Quality, Color and Trim and Design Program Management, by Mr. Anil Saini, Director- Design Studio, General Motors-India and his team
2. Introduction to Speed forms, by Prof. Gaurang Shah and Mr. Sandeep Varma, MITID™ followed by assignment work.

1. Case Studies for Utility vehicle, by Mr. Suresh Hiremani, Dy. GM - Styling Studio, Mahindra & Mahindra
2. Demonstration on Computer Aided Surfacing (CAS) and Clay Modeling by Mr. Sandeep Varma and Mr. Donshong Koren, MITID™
3. Introduction to Vehicle Packaging and Ergonomics, by Prof. Gaurang Shah followed by Mini project on small car design.

The project work carried out by participants in groups was assessed by Jury panel and the best design proposal was awarded to groups PLUTO and LYNX.

The PIP was attended by participants from all across India. The industry participation was from John Deere India Pvt. Ltd., Pune, Tata Motors, Pune, TATA AUTOCOMP SYSTEMS LTD-Technical Centre, Pune, NOTION INK DESIGN LABS PVT. LTD., Bangalore, GENERAL MOTORS INDIA Pvt. Ltd., Bangalore and ARAI, Pune. The student participation was from various colleges from Pune, Mumbai, Manipal, Jaysinghpur, Bhopal, Ahmadabad, Chennai and Indore. 

The programme concluded with a vote of thanks by Mr. R. Donshong Koren from MITID™ and a group photograph.