![\"GM](\"https:\/\/www.thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/GM-Lockheed-Martin-lunar-terrain-vehicle--1024x576.jpg\")
When it opens during the second half of 2022, the new campus will expand upon the current center\u2019s mission to push the cutting edge of design, engineering and other technologies. The existing facility has not only worked on the development of traditional cars and light trucks, but also recently previewed a prototype lunar buggy<\/a><\/span><\/strong> that would be used for NASA\u2019s planned return to the moon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re always trying to reach out and see how far we can go and (find) what\u2019s really the limit,\u201d said Bryan Nesbitt, GM\u2019s executive director of Global Advanced Design. \u201cThat\u2019s what this space is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most major automakers now operate advanced design and engineering centers on the West Coast. They\u2019re meant to pick up on the region\u2019s cutting-edge trends while also giving quick access to the tech centers of Los Angeles and Silicon Valley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHaving a physical presence in Southern California\u2019s technology epicenter is an integral part of our global design operations and this new innovation campus will not only expand our operations twofold, but offers access to the rich cultural diversity and talent in the region,\u201d said Michael Simcoe, GM vice president of Global Design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The current, 2-acre campus in North Hollywood has simply run out of space, Nesbitt explained during a virtual media roundtable. The Pasadena center will have numerous buildings spread across 8 acres.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Much of the effort today is focused on advanced design, \u201cnew ideas,\u201d Nesbitt explained, that are “much farther out, maybe two generations out, from actual production.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The new facility will play an even bigger role for GM going forward as it adapts to major changes in the world of transportation. The current campus played a key role in the development of the Cruise Origin, for example. The fully driverless shuttle vehicle will soon begin rolling around the streets of San Francisco as part of a pilot program that could eventually see the Origin go into commercial service worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Advanced Design Center also helped in the development of GM\u2019s new BrightDrop subsidiary. Set to launch next year, it will market electric delivery vans and the droid-like EP1. It worked up a design for Cadillac\u2019s flying car prototype<\/a><\/span><\/strong> and pushed even further into the heavens with a lunar rover concept developed as part of a joint venture with Lockheed Martin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n More down to earth, the Advanced Design Center will look at potentially radical new shapes for tomorrow\u2019s electric and autonomous vehicles. The automaker\u2019s new EVs will use skateboard like platforms with their motors and batteries mounted under the load floor. That frees up space where an internal combustion engine normally would go. In turn, that can be repurposed for passengers and cargo.<\/p>\n\n\n\nNeed for a West Coast location<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Cruise-Origin-with-Vogt-1024x628.jpg\")
Impact the new location may have<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Cadillac-VTOL-and-pod-prototypes.jpg\")