Automotive design has historically been male dominated, and a new research project at the Intelligent Mobility Design Centre is aiming to highlight, and subsequently, redress this imbalance.

Car design has long been a male-dominated industry. Only 13% of European mobility designers are female, and that percentage falls to approximately 7% for top management positions. Mobility and Automotive Design are changing, and new roles and disciplines are emerging, but fundamentally, it is still a male-dominated sector. 

The IMDC is launching a research project to examine the causes of this, and what solutions could be proposed to improve the gender balance in the automotive industry. 

“We need to transform the industry, and for that to happen, we need all voices to be heard. Only then will we be able to produce better designs, so we need to reimagine the role of women in automotive design,” says Dr Artur Mausbach. 

“We need to transform the industry, and for that to happen we need all voices to be heard. Only then will we be able to produce better designs, so we need to re-imagine the role of women in automotive design”Dr Artur MausbachSenior Research Fellow

There are many industries that are largely male-dominated, but in some, there is an active shift to encourage change. We are seeing a very public push to encourage more females into motorsport, for instance, where IMDC designer Farhana Safa recently competed in Formula Woman, an international motor racing competition to encourage more women into a heavily male dominated sport.

“A similar examination and shift is overdue in car design where currently, female representation is the exception, not the rule” says Farhana Safa. ‘‘What opportunities are being created to encourage more women into this industry, and what are the consequences of the optics of all male management teams for aspiring female visionaries in this space?”

“A similar examination and shift is overdue in car design where currently, female representation is the exception, not the rule.”Dr Farhana SafaSenior Automotive Designer

The IMDC believes that addressing this will not only improve the opportunities for women, but ultimately result in more innovative and interesting designs. “We aim to transform automotive design into a more diverse and inclusive practice and, with that, nurture the development of better designs” says Artur Mausbach.

The project aims to collate information about the participation of women in automotive design, identify role models, and engage with the wider community of designers through interviews to identify areas for improvement and change.

The results of this research will provide the background for the Re-imagining Women in Automotive Design event, to be held in late May at the Royal College of Art.  Involving designers and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion experts, the event aims to impact both car design education and the automotive sector. Whilst addressing the participation of women, this project aims to rebalance gender and discriminatory practices in the right direction for equality and diversity, and contribute to creating a more inclusive industry as a whole.