HHLA Sky’s Automated First Responder Drone X4 has been awarded the German Design Award 2023 in the category “Excellent Product Design”. This quadcopter drone was specially designed with the needs of first responders and security professionals in mind. The prestigious award was presented by the international jury of the German Design Council.

“The Automated First Responder Drone X4 not only remains airborne for long periods of time, but its advanced, functional design makes it easy to operate and maintenance-friendly. It’s perfect for professional use,” said the jury, to affirm their decision.

“The X4 is designed for absolute efficiency and usability,” explains Design Professor Thomas Hofmann from Osnabrück's University of Applied Sciences. He developed the design for HHLA Sky's X4 together with an interdisciplinary team of industrial designers, and experts in security, drones and IT.

Hofmann adds: “Flight time is an important factor in regard to procurement. The X4 combines optimized flight times with maximum user-friendliness and durability with modularity for rapid maintenance and connectivity with HHLA Sky's Integrated Control Center.”

“The X4 is designed for daily industrial use,” says HHLA Sky Managing Director Matthias Gronstedt: “Ready to fly in wind and rain. Easy to handle and made for speedy deployment – straight out of the case."  During the development of the X4, his team paid special attention to cyber security and operational safety, Gronstedt emphasizes: “These requirements are in equal demand for both emergency and security services as well as in industrial applications.”

Automation is the real innovation of the X4. “This makes drone operations scalable.” says Matthias Gronstedt: “As a result, the X4 can form a unit with HHLA Sky's Integrated Control Center, which is a highly automated mobile robot management software. It controls and monitors the drones. This requires a very small operating staff. “That's where everything is coordinated – and, if you like, remotely controlled.”, says Matthias Gronstedt. This allows simultaneous flight of more than 100 X4 drones, which can complete different missions in entirely different locations. Even without pilots on site.

It provides demanding customers in industry and government with a powerful automated tool that significantly increases operational efficiency and is tailor-made for the ongoing digitalization of our society.

With the German Design Award, the German Design Council honors outstanding design solutions which address fundamental questions: How can the sustainable transformation of our industry and society be accomplished? What new ways of thinking, materials and economic models are needed to achieve this goal? The fact that HHLA Sky was selected from more than 4,200 submissions from 47 countries and is now one of the award winners makes it even more rewarding.

Discover more about the X4 drone and the German Design Award.