Name: Jay Beever
Company: Embraer Executive Jets
Position: Vice President Interior Design
Website: Embraer Executive Jets
What projects are you currently working on?
We are working on additional Lineage 1000E concepts like the Kyoto Airship and Skyacht One…. Though I can’t specifically state which projects I have running, I can say they are exciting and will continue setting the mark of interior design excellence.
What projects have you recently completed?
Most recently we finished our ACE project which is an interior enhancement package for existing Phenom 100 owners. This interior package allows them to reinvent their aircraft look, feel and performance.
The SkyRanch One collaboration with Sotto Studio’s is another project just recently completed and has also been shortlisted in The International Yacht & Aviation Awards 2017.
Where do you feel aviation design is going in terms of interior schemes?
From an industrial design standpoint I see a lot of modern organically shaped designs that seem to have been inspired by Architectural works like those of Zaha Hadid. I think this is a good trend considering the tooling required to make these interiors will help push aerospace industry engineers into new disciplines.
From a customer interior design point of view there are a plethora of new material options ranging from environmentally friendly to exotic. This allows for incredible diversity, which means each aircraft is unique and a trend setter in its own way.
Name five key themes to consider when approaching design in 2017 and beyond.
1) Limit interior exposure to “Point In Time” technology. 2) Recyclable or sustainable materials. Still relevant. 3) Bio mimicry 4) Discrete personalization sandbox zones that “Wow” the customer. 5) Exoskeletal design. Make the structure elegant and worthy of display.
What are your favourite recent schemes – please describe key elements.
There are two Legacy 500’s we recently completed that I am very fond of. One was an interior that used an F. List veneer product that simulated what is best described as a nautical. Layers of stacked planks of wood like the side of a Mahogany Hacker Craft from the 30’s. The second was an interior that made extensive use of carbon fiber on all hard surfaces. My initial concern was that it would feel too sports car like. The actuality was that it looked like a classy piano black interior that came to life when lit with sunlight. Amazing three-dimensional feel.
If you could offer one piece of advice when it comes to design schemes, what would it be?
Create canvases that allow the customer maximum material application diversity.
As for the customer’s interior design point of view I would present the customer with multiple design trends so as to gauge interest in novel vs traditional schemes. Less veneer and more trimmed surfaces in areas like bulkhead covers. Then make sure the customers feel they have designed the interior instead of you.
What products/services could you not live without when designing?
3D configurators with real time rendering software are an absolute necessity these days. It is so important to be able to visualize the end result. Especially for our customers who do not want to be disappointed when they take delivery of their aircraft. These 3D design steps allow us to fully realize a new interior and receive customer buy off in hours instead of days and weeks.
As a designer please list the following
The place that gives you most inspiration.
Laguna Beach, CA
The place you can relax
Cruising the intercostal waterways of Fort Lauderdale, FL in my Grandfather’s1959 MFG Edinboro runabout.
The most inspirational design scheme/project you have seen/visited in recent times.
Sotto Studio’s Lineage 1000E SkyRanch One.