Every year, the International Design Awards recognize and celebrate the best and most innovative designs in various areas and sectors, separating the winners by five subjects: architecture, interiors, fashion, graphic and product design.
In the end of February. the FLEXCRAFT project was recognized with the “GOLD Design Award” in the Transport/Aerospace category (inserted within the product design subject).
Conceived by a consortium of Portuguese companies, the FLEXCRAFT (Flexible Aircraft) is an aircraft project that combines the idea of modularity, allowing a reconfiguration of the cabin for different missions (commercial and leisure, relief and assistance, among others), with STOL (Short Take Off and Landing) capability, to compete with rotary wing solutions, through short runway operation, improving overall performance.
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- Visual Projection 1
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- Visual Projection 2
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- Visual Projection 3
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- Visual Projection 4
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- Visual Projection 5
(images: FLEXCRAFT Consortium)
The consortium is composed by Almadesign, Embraer, INEGI, Instituto Superior Técnico and SETsa (Iberomoldes Group), all Cluster members.
Flight and Operation, Versatility and Usability and Materials and Production Processes are the three pillars of the project that presents a sustainable solution not only for its transformative capacity but also because it will use alternative energy sources.
Althoug the award refers to products of the year 2020, this aircraft was already designed in 2019 and had the opportunity to be “presented to the world” at Portugal’s stand, during the Paris Air Show, one of the largest international events in the aerospace sector.
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- The FLEXCRAFT demonstrator at the Portugal stand, with José Rui Marcelino, CEO and Design Manager at Almadeign
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- Stand visit of the Minister of National Defence, the Secretary of State for Internationalization and the Portuguese Ambassador to France, next to the FLEXCRAFT demonstrator
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- Presentation of the FLEXCRAFT project to the Minister of National Defence