ECR88D wins prestigious international product design award

The ECR88D short swing radius compact excavator from Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) beat thousands of international products and wowed a panel of design experts to win an esteemed iF product design award. The internationally renowned quality label recognizes outstanding design achievement – and has been doing so for more than 60 years. Only the very best designs, in 17 categories, managed to convince the international jury – and this year 3,249 products were entered from around the world. The machine – which is designed for use in confined areas – was awarded the prestigious prize in category 1: transportation design and special vehicles. The jury thoroughly examined each entry – the evaluation criteria included design quality, degree of innovation, environmental impact, functionality and safety. Professor Fritz Frenkler, jury chairman, said that he was impressed by the consistent high quality of the entries, the passion for innovation and the courage manufacturers showed to pursue their own design approaches. The new Volvo FH from Volvo Trucks also won an iF product design award, making this a double success for the Volvo Group.

Award-winning design

“We are extremely proud that the ECR88D has been awarded this globally-recognized mark of outstanding design quality,” says Stina Nilimaa Wickström, design director at Volvo CE. “The ECR88D is one of the first excavators from the new Volvo design generation and represents a complete redesign of a Volvo machine. The machine exudes premium quality and is instantly recognizable as ‘a Volvo’. It is fantastic that the updated design identity has been recognized by one of the largest, most distinguished design competitions in the world.”

The ECR88D features a narrow body design, centrally positioned boom and compact superstructure which allows the rear of the machine to swing within its track shoe. This allows the excavator to get extremely close to objects without the risk of collision with the rear of the machine as it swings.

Outstanding design quality

“This award is a tribute to the hard work and dedication of Volvo CE’s skilled employees who continue to push the boundaries of technology and design,” says Anders P. Larsson, executive vice president of Volvo CE’s Technology function. “Volvo CE’s articulated haulers, wheel loaders and excavators have all won prestigious, global awards for their exceptional design and innovative engineering. This is a great honor and an excellent achievement which demonstrates that Volvo CE is at the forefront of technological development and industrial design.”

Around 2,000 guests from the world of international design, media, business and politics are expected to celebrate the iF award winners on February 28th in Munich, Germany. At the ceremony the ECR88D may still achieve further success – the jury will honor the very best designs with an iF gold award.

Text: Charlie Ebers 

Picture 1: The ECR88D short swing radius compact excavator from Volvo Construction Equipment beat thousands of international products to win a prestigious iF product design award.