EMOTIONAL DESIGN AND THE EXTERIOR STYLING DEVELOPMENT OF A WFSV

Exterior styling is responsible for that visceral response of 'love at first sight'. The fact that styling is as important for a vehicle’s marketing success as its technical performance has been known since the 1930s. The recent exterior design developments by leading companies in the commercial vessel sector, shows that they are developing an appreciation of this realisation. In considering the relationship of commercial vessel exterior form language aesthetics and emotional design, it is useful to first consider the automotive industry where this relationship is firmly established. Perception of a new car by a potential customer usually happens from the outside to the inside through different levels of detail. The first characteristic of a car that catches a potential customer’s attention, engaging their emotional perception is the aesthetic appearance of its exterior styling. Studies from the defence sector indicate the implementation of Marine Design, which includes exterior styling, would represent about 2.5-4% of acquisition costs with a potential return on investment of between 40-60:1. This paper reviews current examples of exterior styling in the commercial vessel industry and the associated benefits to both brand and user (crew). Several exterior styling proposals for a WFSV are presented and reviewed.