Bombardier Co-Creates Future of Rail with Consumers

Opening Up to “Open Innovation”

Today the globe’s leading companies are tapping into a virtually infinite wellspring of innovation: consumer creativity online. Companies such as BMW, Swarovski, Procter & Gamble and now Bombardier Transportation are altering the traditional business model. They’re using open innovation applications and user-generated content (UGC) to break down barriers and engage consumers in designing products, services and technologies.

“There is a quiet revolution going on out there,” explains Dr. Johann Füller, CEO of HYVE AG, an innovation agency based in Munich, Germany. “The internet’s consumer-centric culture puts tremendous power in the hands of users. Leading organizations are starting to leverage this power to build better solutions and boost their competitiveness.”

Engaging Consumers as Partners

As an early adopter of open innovation, BMW began enabling customers to design their own Z3 roadster. Customers choose from 26 wheel design options and 123 console options to configure a “custom” car that is delivered in just 12 days.

In 2008, D. Swarovski & Co. launched the ENLIGHTENED Watch Design Contest, an online design contest open to all. Some 1,650 people contributed more than 2,000 watch designs using Swarovski gemstones. Members of this open innovation community voted for their favourite designs, competed for prizes and inspired Swarovski’s manufacturing partners.

These and many other open innovation success stories prompted Bombardier Transportation to build its own web-based open innovation community.

YouRail: Bombardier’s Emerging Innovation Community

On October 26, 2009, Bombardier Transportation became the first rail manufacturer to create an online innovation community by launching a unique interior design contest: YouRail – Visions of Modern Transportation. “YouRail” calls on consumers to unleash their creativity and express their vision of the future of train interiors.

“While input from rail operators, our direct customer, is still crucial,” says Martin Ertl, Chief Innovation Officer, Bombardier Transportation, “this contest enables us to engage end-users directly to better understand passenger needs and propose innovative solutions. It’s about embracing a new approach to value creation that also gives users an active social network full of collaborative opportunities.”

By integrating end-users into its design process, Bombardier benefits from:

An enhanced grasp of consumer desires
Access to diverse external design ideas
An improved ability to identify trends
A new channel for recruiting employees
A deeper consumer connection to Bombardier products

“Open innovation and open source are developments that we cannot ignore any longer,” states Chris Antonopoulos, Vice President Sales, Bombardier Transportation. “By creating this contest, we are embracing a very critical success factor: the voice of the consumer."

Putting Consumers at the Heart of Design

YouRail contest participants can submit hand-drawn designs for three types of passenger:

Leisure
Business
Everyday

They can also design seat covers using a 3D configuration tool. Bombardier experts challenge and motivate participants online, ensuring a rich dialogue between the company and consumers.

“Our goal is to attract the international design community, hobby designers, train users and enthusiasts, professionals, students, scholars and anyone else who wants to help shape the future of rail,” explains Ertl. “We don’t want to put any restrictions on participants’ creativity. We want people to imagine the future of rail through their own eyes. This will give us a unique opportunity to see what consumers perceive as value.”

Judging and Prizes

Community members and design and transportation experts rank submissions using a five-star system. A jury composed of Bombardier Transportation executives and external experts selects the winning designs. In addition to monetary prizes, these designs will be presented at InnoTrans in Berlin in 2010.

“Interacting with users is essential to creating a sustainable organization and to satisfying customers,” asserts Sharon Christians, Vice President Communications and Public Affairs, Bombardier Transportation, and YouRail jury member. “I look forward to seeing interior train designs of the next decade!”

YouRail – Visions of Modern Transportation
Open to all. Deadline for submissions: December 16, 2009.

Growing Importance of Interior Design in Rail

Rail operators face increasing competition and a growing need for passenger-friendly designs. Vehicle design is now a major driver of competitive advantage and increasingly important in tenders. Due to a rail vehicle’s 30-year lifespan, designers and engineers need to think in extremely long-term trends.

Bombardier’s Design for Environment (DfE) guidelines help them deliver products that are more energy efficient, recyclable and environmentally sustainable.

One example of sleek, modern and inviting interiors is Bombardier’s new ZEFIRO portfolio of high speed trains. Its open tube design maximizes interior space to ensure excellent passenger flow and create a feeling of spaciousness. Its interior layout, including seats, shapes and colours, can be customized to suit specific operator needs. The ZEFIRO train offers first-class passenger comfort and integrates numerous smart details.