October 6, 2016 by Jodi Williams

Tesla: How a Super-Fly Car Can Change the World

The 2016 CallisonRTKL Design Conference took place September 19-22 in New York City. “Excelsior”—New York’s state motto, which means “ever upwards”—was the theme of this year’s event, which brought together 18 up-and-coming designers from each of the firm’s global offices for two days of professional development, team-building and design inspiration. This post is the first in a series of reflections from some of this year’s attendees on their experiences.

“Bring your driver’s license,” they said. As weary world travelers, the CallisonRTKL design conference attendees were a little surprised to be reminded to bring basic identification documents….that is until we learned we were going to visit the Tesla Motors showroom in Manhattan!

Located in an industrial space, Tesla’s showroom is simple in order to highlight the product: the MODEL S® and the MODEL X®. These cars are amazing design innovations. Not only are they among the first fully electric vehicles, but Tesla Motors designers also rethought some of the basics of automobile design—for example, no combustion engine means there is room in the front AND the back for a trunk. And, like a Lamborghini or Marty McFly’s Delorean, the MODEL X®’s Falcon Wing doors open up and out to allow passengers to enter and exit the rear seats without hunching over. Crash detection and multi-directional movement allow the Falcon Wings to open under pretty tight circumstances (yes, we tested this technology with our own heads).

A small design studio in one portion of the showroom allows you to create your own personal Tesla Motors automobile using touch screen technology while sipping fancy coffee from an espresso bar. After building several models, I can say with conviction that all of the Design Conference attendees have very expensive taste! Our guide patiently answered question after question while we climbed in, on, over and through the models in the showroom, hitting every button. And yes, there is an “insane” button.

Then the moment we were all waiting for: test rides in the MODEL S®. I will admit, I was more impressed than I expected to be. Even in bumper-to-bumper Manhattan traffic, the car was able to autopilot safely and smoothly.

What I found most inspiring, however, was not the sleek, luxurious look and feel of the products or the nifty engineering: it was the company culture that really stood out. We had the opportunity to chat with a number of employees, and while most of the conversation consisted of our peppering them with questions about the car—how long it takes to charge (in as little as 20 minutes with the Supercharger), when we can get the MODEL 3® (in a couple of years) and how much it costs ($72,000 for the MODEL S®. $72,000 with a $7,500 tax credit available in the first year of ownership; the MODEL 3® will start in the mid-$30,000 range)—other questions revealed eye-opening answers about the vision and mission of Tesla Motors.

Our tour guide’s eyes lit up when he began to share about Tesla’s Powerwall, which you can buy and install in your own home. It got even more exciting when he opened up about Tesla’s new partnership with Southern California Edison: Tesla will provide large scale batteries capable of storing excess power generated during times of low demand in order to offset demand at peak times. The plant will hold 20 MW of power, or enough to power 2,500 homes for a day. As a point of comparison, approximately 10% of coal-powered plants in the US generate 20 MW or less each. This will enable the power company to reduce the number of times it has to burn fuel or light dormant plants, in turn helping to prevent brownouts and power surges. The initiative will have a dramatic impact on reducing energy use and point source pollution, as well as increasing personal comfort.

Our test driver told me that every morning, when he wakes up, he listens to Elon Musk talks on YouTube (I think he was joking). But when he spoke about the product and the company, he showed his true colors: his passion for engineering and how things work together is paired with a vested interest in personal health and sustainability and the impact automobiles have on those things. In Manhattan in particular, gasoline-powered cars, trucks, and busses spew emissions all day long, negatively impacting air quality and worsening the urban heat island effect. Our driver noted what a difference fully electric vehicles could make for the environment and for the people living in it. It’s not about the super-fly car; it’s about making the world a better place through smart design.

I love the idea that Tesla Motors’ design and engineering efforts serve a larger purpose and look beautiful while doing so. I believe I’m going to put my name on the wait list for the MODEL 3®. Thanks to Tesla Motors for constantly pushing to be better than the best—excelsior!

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Jodi Williams

Jodi Williams brings nearly 15 years of experience in workplace strategy, facility planning, and change management. She leads strategic planning efforts for public and private sector clients, and has been a featured speaker at industry events such as IFMA World Workplace, Greenbuild, and NeoConEast.