Berg Propulsion BRC800 Control Panel

red dot: best of the best
red dot award: product design 2009

Pointing the way – design and imagination
It was steered via a massive side rudder. The Kvalsund boat, an 18-metre long Viking boat that was found in 1920 near Kvalsund on the West Norwegian island of Nerlandsøya, is one of the oldest and most impressive finds of its kind. It dates back to the 7th century and, since it is well preserved, shows how highly developed the shipbuilding craftsmanship and navigation skills of the early Vikings was. The Berg Propulsion BRC800 control panel is a design interpretation of our century, lending a new appeal to such control panels. It features a reduced and sober design with simple, geometric main shapes. The panel is ergonomically sculpted for easy handling and the most important functions are aligned towards the centre of the panel, where they are easy to read for the pilot. An important assistance in the often complex everyday work on a boat is incorporated by the design of the display screens: all information is graphically and numerically shown on the display of the control panel, while the display graphics communicate the same language as the physical panel. The choice to give it a black background and white symbols gives it a visually strong contrast, making information as readable and clear as possible. This sober and clean layout of a control panel combines in the Berg Propulsion BRC800 with durable, high-quality materials to avoid service and maintenance far away on the ocean. Another outstanding design detail is the extra big throttle lever so that the skipper gets the feeling of driving a big ship with great power. In this manner, this control panel realises the principle of a sophisticated, functional reduction – it stimulates the imagination of those who use it on a daily basis.