Project purpose
Spring, 2021
Design an ultra-light weight Basecamp concept trailer that extends the Airstream brand and lifestyle to a new segment of customers. It should be a smaller, lighter in weight and less expensive travel trailer, easily towable by most SUVs, provide the essential components for the full camping experience, and feasible from a technical and business perspective.
| Majors | Faculty |
|---|---|
| Graphic Design Interior Architecture & Design | Joel Gundlach, Professor, Product Design Kelly DeVore, Associate Professor, Interior Design |
The Process
Student teams worked with the Basecamp, one of Airstream’s models designed for outdoor enthusiasts, to explore additional product enhancements, weight-saving measures, and interior concepts.
Starting with customer research, students identified key personas that would be interested in an ultra-light Basecamp model, exploring market size and viability. The team visited local Airstream dealers to gain insights into the current models, researched materials and components, and then built out full-scale, progressively more detailed models and prototypes they used to gather feedback on interior concepts, kitchen and bathroom configurations, and roof construction.
Results
The team created a final full-scale prototype of the ultra-light Basecamp concept that was theoretically capable, when constructed using customary Airstream manufacturing processes, of being towed by a SUV, stored in an average-sized garage, and configured to have key features that individuals in the target personas want.
In the final presentation, the students walked Airstream leadership through the design process and demonstrated the layout of the reconfigured Basecamp, including the removable kitchen, convertible bed, and popup roof. Also, the design and fabrication process was fully documented and published
Working with a company that has such a rich history and established brand, we had to make something new that also fit within their family of designs. It was very new to us. It was actually very challenging yet fun—a great experience.
Anthony Martin
Interior Architecture & Design, 2022
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