SHOWING WHAT THEY’RE MADE OF

Creative Mobile Interiors (CMI) are no stranger to Lamin-Art and our products. We featured another CMI project in a previous case study, but we return to them because they continue to push the envelope with creative and wildly innovative uses of Lamin-Art products.

CMI perform interior and exterior conversions on all types of vehicles, for all types of applications. The vehicles they transform vary from personal day-trippers and motorhomes, to executive mobile offices, to mobile marketing. According to Aaron Lane, design engineer and marketing coordinator at CMI, the demand for their custom conversions continues to rise.

“Especially in recent years, these executive vehicles have become more common because of the cost of air travel,” says Lane. “These vehicles are not only used to get from point A to point B, but to do so in comfort, with all the amenities needed for a productive work environment.”

To show off the amazing potential of their conversions, CMI builds a new demo vehicle about every two years. When it is not on display in the lot of their Grove City, Ohio headquarters, CMI use the demo to pick-up customers from the airport (for that special “wow” factor, says Lane). Meant to be the model of ingenuity, CMI set out to build a new demo and showcase their innovative design.

“Building a demo allows us as a company to try new things with our vehicles,” Says Lane. “New brands of audio, flooring, you name it."

We were looking to push the envelope, so we created ‘Penny.'

— Aaron Lane, Design Engineer and Marketing Director, CMI

A UNIQUE, DISTINCTIVE MODEL

The “Penny Edition” Custom Executive Sprinter came to CMI very different than its end result. The design team started with a bare-bones Mercedes Sprinter cargo van—bare metal, no windows—and built up from scratch. A modest canvas, CMI took the Sprinter and created a masterpiece; starting from the design-angle of incorporating accent pieces made of pennies, CMI built the vehicle with all the metallic gleam and copper glow of its namesake currency.

Functionally, the “Penny Edition” Custom Executive Sprinter needed to exemplify luxury and comfort to the customers visiting the shop. Most vehicle shopping involves kicking the tires, a trip to CMI involves kicking-back.

Penny is designed for business or pleasure, but it is basically a daytripper. It’s all the practicality of a family SUV, with the luxury typically reserved for an executive jet.

— Aaron Lane, Design Engineer and Marketing Director, CMI

From form to functionality, CMI needed the “Penny Edition” to really stand-out. A unique, supremely distinctive example of the masterful design and engineering they perform with automobiles of all kinds.

We have always considered Lamin-Art to be our top-of-theline offering. We enjoy being able to have something a little different, a little flashy.

— Aaron Lane, Design Engineer and Marketing Director, CMI

CMI used Striations Brushed Bronze for trim along the floor and curb of the “Penny Edition,” a nod to the design elements of the executive jets they are replacing. CMI installed a third strip of Lamin-Art’s embossed metal surface along the ceiling of the vehicle. To achieve a certain “pizazz,” the ceiling trim is installed in such a manner to reflect the light of five continuous strips of LED lighting.

The “Penny Edition” Custom Executive Sprinter is made all the more luxurious, stylish and distinctive by the care and detail put into the design. CMI knew they were building a special vehicle, and they chose specific design elements to achieve their vision. According to Lane, Metal-Art 615 Striations Brushed Bronze was an obvious choice.

“Other decorative surfaces tend to be flat in terms of look and feel,” says Lane. “We always reserve Lamin-Art for projects when we know the customer needs something a little unique and a little more high-end. There is nothing like Metal-Art out there. For the reflectivity, the uniqueness, and design detail Metal-Art is the perfect choice.”

A PRETTY PENNY

A functioning showpiece, the “Penny Edition” builds its palette from the copper and metallic aesthetic of a US penny. The theme starts from the outside, where CMI applied a copper-brown paint job. As the side-door slides open to reveal the interior, it becomes apparent CMI took the theme to the apex of style and luxury.

“The metal is a little different from what you typically see in an executive vehicle,” Says Lane. “Me and Josh Gifford— our chief design engineer and president—we like to try new designs and unique accents in our vehicles.”

Metal is present throughout the interior, most notably in the accents made with 574 actual pennies. Various accents, including parallel runners along the center aisle, are made using the shiny copper currency. The runners, made in an alternating heads/tails design, pull the theme together in a striking way.

The copper palette is complimented by all-custom flooring, cabinets and black-leather quilted seats. To maintain metallic notes and offset the warmth of the other design elements, CMI chose Metal-Art 615 Striations Brushed Bronze for trim.

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