Lincoln Opens Own Design Center in Attempt to Recover Brand

LincolnLincolnUnited States of America, 1917 > present26 models
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has been on a gradual downfall for at least the past 20 years and possibly longer. What in the 60s challenged Cadillac in terms of style and cache, slowly became a brand that put nice interiors into relatively mundane Fords.

Ford has finally decided that it needs to rejuvenate the brand and given Lincoln its own design center with 150 designers and engineers filling the space. It is the first time that Lincoln will have its own, dedicated design center since the 70s. 

The new center is in Dearborn, Michigan, on Ford's Product Development Center campus. The center's goal is to create four new Lincoln models by 2015. The 150 people at the design center will only be working there and focus on Lincoln for the near future. 

The building is built with glass walls with no cubicles. Designers and engineers are meant to collaborate freely in the open workspaces. The interior and exterior design teams are situated next to each other to attempt to give the cars a more unified look. 

“We have spent considerable time to develop strong integrated design, engineering and product programs into a common Product Development vision for Lincoln,” said Raj Nair, vice president for Global Product Development at Ford. 

Ford and Lincoln see a chance to take advantage of America slowly coming out of the recession with a completely new type of luxury vehicle on the market, or so they say.