Automotive News Canada - January 2023 - 12

12
* JANUARY 2023
Audi designer works in Germany
but draws strength from Canada
After completing design school
in Sweden, the Toronto native
felt confident. But then his
education was just getting rolling
By DOUG FIRBY
CALGARY CORRESPONDENT
JASON BATTERSBY CREDITS HIS CANADIAN
work ethic with helping him snag a position as
senior exterior designer for Audi in Ingolstadt,
Germany, where his team conjures some of the
company's most innovative vehicles.
CANADIANS
ABROAD
Working in the
auto industry in
other countries
" I try to always communicate
our Canadian values through
my work ethic, how I treat my
colleagues and express myself
through my design work, " said
Battersby, who began in his current
position in early 2021.
In 2010, the Toronto native
was a self-assured graduate
with a master's degree from
Umea University in Sweden,
but an internship at Audi AG
in Munich showed that he was
just beginning to learn the complex art of designing
automobiles.
" I remember arriving at Audi very confident of
my skills . . . only to feel like I was back in Grade
1, and everyone around me was in high school, "
the 37-year-old said. " Those first six months were
extremely difficult, being both new to Germany
and . . . having to compete at the highest level of
design. "
His schedule is varied and demanding. A typical
day involves sketching or rendering digital
designs, visiting the clay-modeling studio, consulting
with colleagues on the 35-member exteriordesign
team, and preparing and presenting renderings
to executives. With two or three programs
always on the go, Battersby has to be " quite agile "
and constantly upgrading his skills.
" Nowadays, we also carry a much more diverse
skill set than ever before, " using a suite of software
to develop 3D models, then render and animate
them, he said. And with concept cars such as
With concept cars such as the Grandsphere,
Jason Battersby's team at Audi is using
sustainable materials that " can elevate the
product and not detract from the performance. "
SUPPLIED PHOTO
Audi's Grandsphere, Battersby's team is showing
how the use of sustainable materials " can elevate
the product and not detract from the performance. "
Battersby's career began after he earned an
industrial-design certificate in 2006 from Humber
College in Toronto. It was an experience he called a
" great gateway " into automotive. He created store
displays for clients, such as Nike and Sears, but
longed to get into vehicle design.
Using a hockey metaphor, Battersby said that
what you do " off the ice " will drive your success
during the game.
" From an early age, I was always building,
tinkering, designing in my free time, and that pure
expression shouldn't stop just because you graduated
design school. "
Battersby and his wife return to Canada a couple
of times a year to catch up with friends and family.
He said he loves to see how Toronto is constantly
evolving and growing in cultural diversity.
Although Battersby has lived in Europe for 13
years, he is Canadian through and through.
" Canadians are few and far between in the car
design business, " he said, " so I always knew in
everything I do, I'm sort of representing the country.
That is definitely something I am proud of. "
- ANC
Caught between
a rock and COVID-19
By JIL McINTOSH
OSHAWA CORRESPONDENT
DIANA DI MICHELE
HEALTH AND SAFETY
IS NOT JUST PHYSICAL
MORE THAN 3,000 PEOPLE
work at Stellantis' assembly
plant in Brampton, Ont., and
they need to leave for home
each day in one piece. That's the
objective for Diana Di Michele,
a health and safety specialist in
the factory.
" Every day is a challenge,
" seeing things constantly change,
especially with the guidelines
around COVID, " she said.
" I have to get the message
through that 'yesterday we did
this, but today we have to do
that.' I understand
people's
frustrations
about it, but I'm a
social person and
it's easy for me
to stay calm and
relate to them
but get the message
across. "
Di Michele and
her supervisor
are health and
safety specialists
in the plant, and
a team of safety
representatives
reports to them.
" Much of my
job is compliance-based,
making
sure we're
meeting corporate
and government
guidelines.
I manage routine
safety tracking
counterparts to determine
models and powertrains for
Canadian buyers.
" We offer a higher entry spec
in Range Rover and Sport than
in the U.S. and
a richer number
of V-8 models, "
Leynaert
said.
" [Canadians]
tend to expect
more features
than in other
markets. "
A challenge for Stellantis'
Diana Di Michele during the
COVID-19 pandemic was
implementing the changing
health guidelines.
PHOTO: STELLANTIS CANADA
and data as well as investigations
when things come up.
" Some days I can be on the
floor from one end of the plant
to the other, or on the computer
updating policies. "
The 32-year-old went to nursing
school, " but I'm a germophobe,
and it wasn't for me, so
I switched and got a degree in
health and safety. "
Starting in 2015, she spent two
summers as a vacation replacement
worker at the Brampton
plant. When she graduated in
2016, she was hired for health
and safety at the FCA casting
plant in Toronto.
She went back to Brampton in
her current position in 2018.
" That's where I started and
I knew everyone, and it's a bigger
plant and more of a learning
opportunity. "
In addition to physical safety,
" we're focusing on a wellness
approach to safety. The focus
will go beyond and look at mental
health as well. "
ALAIN LEYNAERT
LUXURY PLANNING FOR
CANADIAN CUSTOMERS
THERE ARE MARKET
nuances when it comes to
luxury vehicles and it's Alain
Leynaert's job as product planning
manager at Jaguar Land
Rover in Mississauga, Ont., to
understand them.
He consults with his U.S.
There are more U.S. buyers
who primarily want the nameplate
and will take a lesserequipped
model that's at the
limit of their budget, he said.
" For Canadians, it's a luxury
product at a luxury price, and
that's where the [market] intricacies
come in. "
Leynaert, 39,
grew up in a
" car-obsessed
family, " and a
birthday gift of
Car and Driver
magazine steered
him to journalism
school to be
an auto writer.
" A research
company in the
U.K. wanted
someone to join
their team in
Canada writing
a newsletter, and
I got in there in
2005. I was writing
articles on
sales volumes.
I was a senior
specifications
researcher,
which is right
down to how
many cupholders a car has, and I
realized I was interested in product
management. "
Leynaert was hired into his
current role in 2016 after a mentor
moved to Jaguar Land Rover.
An average day involves analyzing
sales data and market
trends, including forecasting
upcoming electric vehicles, " and
finding white space and something
to fit into those areas. "
" We're working three to four
years out, dealing with [Jaguar
Land Rover in the U.K.] to
ensure we're aligned. Anybody
can learn anything, but you can't
fake automotive passion, and
that's why I do this. " - ANC
A stint as a vehiclespecifications
researcher
led Alain Leynaert to realize
he wanted to be in product
management. He joined
Jaguar Land Rover in 2016.
PHOTO: JAGUAR LAND ROVER
CANADA
http://www.kumhotire.ca
Automotive News Canada - January 2023

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