Theme of the competition
Editoriale DOMUS, in collaboration with Professor Seferis, is promoting a competition to bring up new ideas for the
interior of the BOEING BUSINESS JET (BBJ). Based on the Next Generation Boeing 737-700, the BBJ responds to market demand
for an ultra-long-haul business airplane. With its 75 m² of interior cabin space, the BBJ is able to please every customer
– be it a head of state, the CEO of a corporation, or a wealthy individual. Moreover, this private jet can serve as an
efficient office with fast world-wide communication capacities, a high-quality meeting room, a luxurious personal suite,
or a combination of any of the above.
The BBJ’s exceptionally large cabin area opens up new perspectives for innovative interior designs. To encourage
original new ideas, this competition is purposely left open to what revolutionizing interior designs might be submitted.
Contestants can choose their subjects – for example new lay-out for the whole cabin, improvement of private space,
individual items, refined work-space, low noise level acoustics, advanced climate control, versatility of the interior,
best use of water, or even interior interchangeability for the time sharing concept of the jet.
Due to the interdisciplinarity of the subject, the Domus BBJ Design Competition will require the setting-up of work
groups capable of expertly handling technical details of materials, safety and structures, as well as matters relating to
aesthetic appearance, functionality and the attractive design of new aircraft interiors.
Technical Data
| Cabin dimensions: | Length | 24.13 | m |
| Height | 2.16 | m | |
| Width | 3.53 | m | |
| Floor Area | 75 | m^2 | |
| Volume | 149 | m^3 | |
| Weight: | Interior completion allowance | 5625 | kg |
| Range: | Maximum | 11482 | km |
| Cost: | Without interior | 38 Mio | US$ |
| With interior | 43 Mio | US$ |
Guidelines and Rules
Please download the file to read more on the rules of the competition.
F.A.Q
Download a list of the frequently asked questions.
Professor Seferis' Interview
"To lead is to teach, to teach is to learn, to learn is to experience". So Dr. James Seferis, sums up in an interview
released to Domus Editor Francois Burkhardt, the new Boeing Business Jet Concept competition. Professor Seferis, in his
dual role of Boeing professor and advisor of management and technology, and true to the guiding philosophy of his teaching,
asked Domus magazine to promote a competition marked by a new approach and procedure. The model for this competition is
that of the University of Washington’s Team Certificate Program, directed by Dr. Seferis himself. This highly innovative
programme allows the formation of work teams of people both from academic circles and from industry. In this way teachers,
suppliers, decision-makers and users can interact.
The Boeing Business Jet Concept competition will require the setting-up of work groups capable of expertly handling
technical details of materials, safety and structures, as well as matters relating to aesthetic appearance, functionality
and the attractive design of new aircraft interiors. Participants in the competition work groups can be heterogeneous, to
include students, professionals and even executives. The important thing will be always to bear in mind the end-users,
i.e. the owners of business jets, who are generally businessmen or major industrial groups. Competitors will have the
faculty to consult a specially created network of specific knowledge on business sectors, education, design and research.
Furthermore, they will be able to interact with industrial groups like Boeing itself of course, but also Lufthansa and
Raytheon, as interior producers as well as materials manufacturers like Toray of Japan, which assembles materials, all of
whom have been sponsors of the Team Certificate Program in the past. Another sponsor will be BIS (Browne Internet
Solutions), whose task will also be to create the competition Web page.
A key aspect of this competition will in fact be speed. As from its announcement (in the forth-coming June issue of
Domus), entrants will be able to visit the Web page and send in projects. "In terms of judging the information technology",
states Professor Seferis in fact, "it is a requirement that teams choosing to submit to this competition utilize - and I
emphasize the word utilize - rather than innovate new technology, especially information technology that comes into this
competition".
Again on the strength of experience gained in the US by Boeing and the University of Washington "Team Certificate
Program", education, research and the concrete realization of the project will be closely linked. Grafting research and
education programmes into an economic process, based on design to build teams (DBT’s) pioneered by the Boeing 777 program,
has proved successful over the years and has been expanded recently as a formal global group network for Business,
Education, Design and Research (BEDR) under the leadership of Professor Seferis.
BEDR has used its far reaching capabilities to attract distinguished world leaders for the organizing committee of the
competition while Domus, through Professor Burkhardt, has assembled an impressive jury for selection of successful projects
. Together Professor Seferis and Professor Burkhardt will co-chair this competition along with its members from the
organizing, judging and operations committees. The members will naturally include designers, but also architects and
representatives of companies, who during the work will be able to "teach" and at the same time to "learn", thus
experimenting with a new method and drawing on the philosophy that "to lead is to teach, to teach is to learn, to learn
is to experience".
Interview given to Domus Editor François Burkhardt.
Domus no. 815, May 1999, News no. 49.
Prizes
The Competition and Award Committee (Jury) selected the works deserving recognition and awarded the following prizes:
- 1st Prize, 20 000 US$
The Flying Carpet Team, lead by Ana Mir (Barcelona, Spain) - 2nd Prize, 10 000 US$
MIT Kinetic Design Group, lead by Michael A. Fox in Cambridge, MA, USA - Second Prize awarded for their project Interlocking Transformations. - 3rd Prize, 5 000 US$
NEUB, lead by Sebastian Zimmermann in Stuttgart, Germany - Third Prize. - 2 prizes of recognition, 5 000 US$ (each)
Bedini & Partners, lead by Daniele Bedini in Montelupo Fiorentino, Italy and Teague Design, lead by Indle King in Redmond, WA, USA - Honorable Mentions.
Committees
-
The Competition and Award Committee was composed of:
- François Burkhardt, President (Switzerland)
- Borge Boeskov (USA)
- Pierluigi Cerri (Italy)
- Toyo Ito (Japan)
- Jan Kaplicky (England)
- Alberto Meda (Italy)
- Richard Sapper (Germany)
- James C. Seferis (USA)
- Robert Swain (USA)
- Roger Tallon (France) The Senior Advisory/Organizational Committee was composed of:
- Prof. James C. Seferis, President (U. of Washington)
- Prof. François Burkhardt (Domus)
- Bernhard Conrad (Lufthansa)
- Susan Corcos (Plasteki)
- Stelios Haji-Ioannou (easyJet)
- Malcolm Katsumoto (Toray)
- Prof. Luigi Nicolais (University of Naples)
- Toshiaki Ogasawara (Japan Times)
- Kenneth Peek (Raytheon)
- Thomas Schick (Boeing)
- Yi-Taek Shim (Korean Air) The Admission Committee is composed of:
- Prof. James C. Seferis, Chairman
- Prof. François Burkhardt, Co-chairman
- Susan Corcos
- Francesco Giaculli
- Robert Swain
- Dimitris Vamvakaris The Operational Team is composed of:
- Susan Corcos, President
- Korina Brown, Bowne Internet Solutions
- Frederic Buehler, University of Washington
- Thad Dworkin, Boeing Business Jets
- Miranda Giardino di Lollo, Domus Editoriale
- Fred Kelley, Boeing Business Jets
- Tobias Lutterodt, Boeing Commercial Airplane Group
- Lutz Pankow, Fritz&Lutz Design
- Margherita Pozzi, Volta la Carta
- Luigi Spinelli, Domus Editoriale
What is the BBJ?
BBJ Philosophy
The next step in the evolution of corporate travel, the Boeing Business Jet sets a new standard for flexibility. It
combines fuel efficiency for short flights with globe-spanning range. Unprecedented interior space makes it equally valuable
as an office in the air or as a local address at the airport, anywhere in the world.
Space
Nearly three times the space of even the largest new long range corporate jets gives Boeing Business Jet owners more than
just extra head and shoulder room. It gives freedom…the ability to configure the interior so that it exactly matches personal
work and travel preferences. Whether you are talking about luxury, comfort, versatility or productivity, they are all a
function of space.
Comfort
Luxury and comfort always begin and end with space. No matter what you choice of amenities are, they are always better
when they are without compromise in quality and size. There is no substitute for a full-sized shower, a full-sized bed or a
full-sized office or meeting room.
Utility
The Boeing Business jet gives you the kind of utility required in today’s global business environment. You have a self-
contained home and business environment in full-scale: bedroom, dining room, meeting room. Room to entertain, relax, exercise,
sleep, eat or work – just as though you were at your home or office. And unlike other options in business aviation, these are
choices given you or a whole team.
Support
A global business aviation resource requires a global maintenance support network. The machines in your transportation
system cannot afford a weak link in even the most remote of places. And this includes pilot and maintenance training as well.
Heritage
As a member of the popular Boeing 737 family, the Boeing Business Jet benefits from a heritage of safety, reliability,
customer service and global field support made legendary by Boeing and GE.
BBJ Characteristics
The business jet is a special high-performance derivative of the Boeing 737-700 specifically designed for corporate and
VIP applications. It combines the size of the 737-700 fuselage (110 feet 4 inches, 33.6 meters) with strengthened wings and
landing gear from the larger and heavier 737-800. This tailored combination provides owners with a business jet platform
having maximum range capability of 7 130 statute miles (6 200 nautical miles, 11 475 kilometers) while requiring less than 6
000 feet (1 829 meters) of runway. With nearly three times the room of other airplanes in this range category, the Boeing
Business Jet provides payload flexibility beyond that of any competitor.
BBJ Customers
BBJ customers and potential customers fall into three categories: 1) CEOs of large companies. 2) Heads of state of
smaller countries. 3) Wealthy individuals. Each of these markets has a different set of mission requirements for the airplane.
However, they all find the BBJ to be an essential tool for working on a global scale. The BBJ customer travels extensively
and needs the space, comfort, utility and support.
FAA Regulations
Due to the very specific environment that is an airplane, there are some stringent regulations concerning safety in the
cabin. These rules are edited by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) and are extremely complicated. We do not expect
the contestants to submit FAA approved design. However, contestants should keep in mind three points: interiors should avoid
flammable materials, be impact resistant, and provide safety to the passengers.