"Mock-ups" - As Close as Possible to The "Real Thing".

A few decades ago, when engineers of railroads used to sit together with engineers from train manufacturers, developing a new train was simpler than it was today. Both sides spoke the same ‘technical’ language, based on technical drawings, using well-proven technical solutions and, if industrial designers or “artists” were called in at all, it was to consult on colours, textiles or some minor visual detail.

Today, the development of modern trains is a multi-disciplinary task involving management and marketing of railways, numerous specialists for interior and exterior details as well as designers and in some cases, even representatives of passengers as well. And developing a large ‘fleet of trains’, usually means joining forces with competing manufacturers and their different engineering and production teams. Today’s trains are meant not only to transport passengers safely from A to B, but also are being designed to attract new passengers in competition with rivalling means of transport, like private cars, airplanes or buses. For this reason, designers today, are often given a head start in order to look for new exterior designs or develop alternatives for the interior layout and innovative solutions for better service and comfort. Relying on perspective drawings, scale models or all types of illustrations together with colour and material samples as basis for decision-making on questions of interior design, quality of service or comfort, has become too risky. The different groups included in this process require a more ‘real’ type of presentation – and if possible long before costly and time-consuming engineering has started. This has led to an increase in the building of full-scale models, so called mock-ups. Coming as close as possible to the “Real-Thing”, they are made of whatever construction material necessary, often trying to use the actual material surfaces for the interior in order to convey the exact appearance of the final production version.

In order to reduce production costs, these mock-ups usually are very concentrated combination of all important or ‘representative’ areas of the train’s interior and exterior into a short model. Generally these mock-ups include the front part, the ‘face’ of the train with the driver’s area in order to test instrument layout and ergonomics, as well as different carriage interiors, service areas, or special environments like entrances, toilets, bistro or restaurant spaces.

The layout of mock-ups is decisive, because they must give a representative image of a larger interior space, often using mirror walls to visually extend the area. They must allow for testing of problematic or alternative solutions and very often, they must be built in a modular way in order to simplify transport.
Despite relatively high costs, all sides gain by using mock-ups as basis for decision-making:

• The clients - be it railways or the future customer, they can see and test what they will be getting in the future, being able to make modifications or even test the future travel environments with prospective passenger groups for additional suggestions.
• The manufacturers - they will be getting clear design and engineering directives once the design as shown in the mock-up has been approved by the client. This allows them to plan engineering and production more precisely without costly and time-consuming mid-term modifications.
• Marketing and advertisement - they can get the possibilities to use the mock-up for promotional efforts of all kinds long before the actual train will be available.
• The designers - it helps them to check or optimize, or even rearrange details or parts of the layout before costly detail planning by the manufacturer has taken place.
• In the engineering phase, these mock-ups play an important part in the communication between designers and engineers. The more detailed the mock-up, the easier it becomes to communicate!

The advantages of using mock-ups for decision-making, in my opinion, far outweigh their relatively high production costs. The development of the next generation subway for the City of Munich / Germany and the interior layout of the new Spanish High-Speed Train serve as a good examples.

1. The New Munich Subway

The Munich Subway Authorities and Neumeister-Design, jointly developed the design study for the next generation of subway trains, based on a careful analysis of passenger demands and 25 years of practical operation experience.
Only after the train-design was approved by City Authorities, it became integral part of the technical description for bidding by industry.The new subway is fully walk-through and features an innovative interior layout with upholstered vis-a-vis seating towards the middle and curved side seats in laminated wood at the front and rear of the train. Cantilever mounted seats, curved hand-rails with glass partitions, sidewall lighting, fresh colors are some of the design features of this interior. A design language, which aims to create an fresh, functional and inviting atmosphere.

1. Mock-up, exterior view
2. Passenger area with 2 seating alternatives
3. Detail of entrance and vis-a-vis seating layout
4. Layout of 12m long mock-up

2. The Interior of the New Spanish High-Speed Train

Based on the German ICE 3, these trains will connect Madrid and Barcelona from 2005 on. The interior has a completely new layout with 3 different passenger classes, new types of service areas, different solutions for bistros and luggage deposits and above all, new, high-quality materials for interior paneling. A new level of quality and modern design is achieved. Here, the mock-up of the front car, into which all innovative solutions of the interior were integrated, was combined with an additional mock-up of the Service Car, showing the complete bistro, different service areas and the large baggage-compartment. Upon presentation of the mock-up to the Spanish railway authorities the detail development could proceed immediately, incorporating some of the requested modifications along the way. The mock-up itself, having been manufactured in Germany, but right from the beginning designed for easy transportation, is now in Spain.

5. Front lounge
6. Interior paneling / View of toilet
7. Interior of tourist-class
8. Bistro interior and conductor's cabin