A team of about 170 students at the Columbus College of Art and Design have begun a semester long project to create a mobile Airstream office/living space. The group is re-imagining the iconic Airstream that could be used by a younger, hipper type of traveler. Airstream CEO Bob Wheeler said this type of Airstream has been waiting on their to-do list, so he respected the decision to give these students a shot. “This brand has  survived for 83 years only by reinventing itself for each generation,” Wheeler said. “If this was really going to be relevant for the worker of the future, it needed to be something designed by them that would appeal to them.”

The CCAD students have presented an initial cardboard mock-up of the design and a 23-foot Airstream shell to their specifications was delivered this month. The students will have until the end of the school year in May to build the interior which looks very similar to our Airstream, complete with collapsible furniture and a hatch door. Turning this prototype into a commercial product that will be mass produced is the team’s goal. Last week, they pitched the idea to Airstream corporate offices.