Portfolio
LENA EBLENKAMP
2026
Portfolio
2026
BA Automotive and Transport Design
Design Engineering Placement
My goal is to create comfortable interior spaces combining craftsmanship and technical elegance.
First-Generation German-American looking for further experiences to push my skills and my creative career.
With mechanical engineering / car enthusiast parents, I grew up appreciating design language and well-built products.
In addition to the automotive world, I have a strong love for photography, fashion, travelling and experiencing new cultures.
Internship at Lear Corporation
9 Month Design Engineer Placement
01
6 Weeks in the trim development shop
Line control
Getting to know the machinery
Working with saddle leather
Sunglass case and Belt
First development project
Leather pouch for my headphones
Creating my own seat cover pattern
Full size seat cushion
FINAL PROJECT DEVELOPMENT Mini seat.
FINAL PROJECT Mini seat.
As a design student, I took on the role of an engineer intern with the intentions of...
Costing was a great introduction to the world of Tier 1 suppliers. Here I learned how costing and pricing work hand in hand, and the importance of tooling costs and management. I had the opportunity to visit suppliers and see the live tooling process.
In this department I got involved in the early design stages of a seat. I was able to help the team come up with solutions for areas that needed to be hidden on the seat in a clever way that was also acceptable from a design standpoint. I also was able work on the general design of the seat, finding a balance between a functional design and the design vision that the OEM had in mind. This was extremely fun and interesting, and a job role I could see myself doing in the future.
I learned all about cost optimization and how this department analyzes a seat to uncover possible cost saving opportunities. This was an important aspect of the business to see. I learned the importance of benchmarking in automotive, how to perform a seat tear down, and how to create my own business case on a potential money saving idea.
Shadowing engineers during real time issues and deadlines, was a great way to understand the efficiency and precision that goes into being an engineer. Most importantly I learned the absolute need for effective communication and teamwork.
This department showed me great insight into the world of planning and organization. Without this team implementing structure into a program, there wouldn't be an efficient workflow. The importance of certain deadlines effected each department like a domino effect.
H-Point was a key concept that I grew familiarity to. A lot of what I learned about in university about A, B, C, and D pillars, and their relation to ingress and egress in a vehicle, was transferable knowledge into this department. I did a lot of comfort testing, and got to use many tools and software's to test things like pressure points and where to find the H-Point.
Now when designing, I can keep in mind what sort of legal tests an automotive product needs to pass, and how much time and money will go into it. I also learned the importance of ingress and egress when it comes to a seat, and how results in testing can vary depending on where and how its being tested, which all needs to be taken into consideration.
Learning the properties of the different plastics that are used in automotive was extremely important for my overall knowledge around materials. I learned what purpose each property in a plastic holds. Personally, as much as I like to see as little plastic as possible in a vehicle, at the end of the day, we will still see it, and have to work with it, as its not going to change as soon as people may like.
I worked one-on-one with an engineer learning the basics of CATIA, which gives me a great advantage for when I enter the automotive industry. I was able to customize a Jaguar leaper into a bottle opener.
Following my time with Plastics and CAD, I got to see a very exciting portion of the process unveil. After developing the bottle opener in CATIA, I was able to work with the 3D printer to print the design.
Luxury Adventure Camper · 2060
Design of a future facing vehicle system that elevates extreme terrain camping. At the core of this concept is the intent to make journeys around nature photography and discovery efficient, comfortable and technologically advanced. The concept is inclusive as the system is designed around limited mobility and wheelchair users, who are currently not able to pursue such hobbies or journeys.
The vehicle system will be in 3 key parts. An EVTOL ‘carrier’ that uses aerial travel to carry, pick-up & drop-off the CAMPINGPODS. The PODS are also a part of a HUB that each pod visits every 48hrs to refuel, recharge, clean and resupply. The 3 part system will create an efficient pod camping system that can be both lightweight yet comfortable, the VTOL brings in a different level of flexibility while the Hub fosters a community safe space.
The design will look at use of weatherproof materials, anthropometric design parameters, innovation in the interior space that is both living and working space, safety and security as key points.
SYSTEM DESIGNED TO OPERATE
WITH MINIMAL DISRUPTION TO WILDLIFE
Non-intrusive design intentions
Job production and limited pods at a time will prevent disruption
1: BOOK JOURNEY
✓ Meal plan
✓ Duration
✓ Interests
2: CHECK IN AT MAIN HUB
✓ Collect food
✓ Safety induction
✓ Settle in camper
3: TAKE-OFF
✓ Aerial viewing
✓ Slow speed
4: DROP-OFF
✓ Hiking
✓ Interactive pod
✓ Grill
5: EVTOL DETACHES
6: PICK UP ANOTHER POD
✓ Pick up another pod
or
✓ Hub for recharging
7: RETURN TO MAIN HUB
8: RECHARGE POD AND YOURSELF
✓ Every 48 hours
✓ Shower
✓ Clean pod
✓ Wash dirty gear
✓ Eat
✓ Socialize
✓ Relax
9: CONTINUE JOURNEY
Lena Eblenkamp · Personal Concept
"More than an aesthetic choice: Titanium stands for technical emotion, its satin luster evokes a warm and technical elegance. A material that embodies precision, lightness, and strength."
"The "Audi click": An unmistakable "Audi click" brings confidence to every interaction."
A future facing interior with the goal to signify structural elegance and convenience.
Conceptual intentions:
Personal Brief
Create an adaptable/customizable interior structure with integrated functions like cooling, storage, and customization, that can evolve with new technologies and styles.
Breville
Bose
Tag Heuer
Audio-Technica
Leica
Dyson
How can we prevent distractions and bring convenience to our handbag in our car?
Cars are becoming more and more of a space to prepare for an event or freshen up.
With constant controversy and changing minds, The owner can actively shop with Audi to update and elevate their interior
Controversy
"loyalty rates have fallen to levels that would have been unthinkable just five years ago"
"The data emerging from 2025 paints a picture of an industry in the midst of a profound consumer behavior shift, one that challenges the very foundation of how manufacturers and dealers have understood customer relationships for the better part of a century."
Florence, F. (2025) — The Death of Brand Loyalty
View Research Paper
Integrated cooling
system into structure.
Secure your bag. –
Minimize distraction
Convenience
Customizable interior
With more screens and AI on the rise, people are split between wanting more screens and automation, while others argue they create distractions, and car interiors should include more manual components.
This way, the customer can choose.
Adjust angles for better
visibility
Even fold away screens when
unnecessary
tilt into operators
direction
Lear Corporation
Final Year University Project
