TODAY, a car is more than just a mode of transport.

Its design is just as important - looking modern and desirable while still meeting safety standards.

The designers at car manufacturer BMW Group would know.

This year, it was awarded the prestigious red dot award for Design Team of the Year, which was handed out on Monday at the Aalto Theatre in Essen, Germany.

Awarded annually since 1988, it honours design teams that set standards through continual design innovation.

Former winners include LG Electronics, adidas and Nokia. This year, there were more than 2,548 entries from 43 countries.

Dr Peter Zac, president of red dot, says choosing the BMW Group as design team of the year was particularly easy.

'The design team significantly and uniquely shapes car design of the beginning 21st century through consistent and solid brand management of its brands,' said Dr Zac in a release from red dot.

Under BMW Group's design chief Chris Bangle's direction, brands under the BMW Group such as BMW, Mini, Rolls-Royce, and BMW Motorrad have strengthened.

The group also won eight awards in the product design category, such as for the BMW 3 Series Coupe and the new Mini Cooper S.

Its subsidiary, BMW Designworks USA, was also product design winners for its designs of the BMW Cruise Bike Junior, a recycling station for beverage holders and the fully automatic coffee percolator Talea Touch.

Set up in 1972, BMW Designworks USA clients include the BMW Group as well as other brands such as Hewlett Packard, Microsoft and Sony.

Last year, a studio was set up in Singapore and it has two offices in southern California and Munich.

Mr Nikolaus von Saurma, director of the Singapore studio, will be sharing the group's success stories at the inaugural red dot Academy conference on July 14.

Called Profit: By Design, it will discuss topics such as the importance of design as a main contributing factor to business success.

For more information on Profit: By Design, click here or call 6534-7194. Fees start from $65 and it will be held at the red dot design museum, 28 Maxwell Road.