Chuck Pelly is a 45-year veteran of the design industry and is a world-renowned product, seating, auto and transportation designer.  He is the founder/former President of Designworks/USA, which grew to be one of the world’s top 10 design consultancies and became a wholly owned subsidiary of BMW Group.

Designworks/USA provided transportation, product, color, materials, graphics and design services for it’s global clients and was instrumental in the design of the BMW X5, Z4 and award-winning BMW 3 Series.  Chuck is the designer of the original Scarab sports car for Lance Reventlow and original Chaparral racecar and has been awarded by Eyes on Design for race car design.

He has led design efforts of noted branded products for almost all major industries.  Nominated 4 times for the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Lifetime Achievement award, Chuck has pioneered the development of comfort ergonomics in office seating, industrial equipment, medical equipment and automobiles.

Chuck has been awarded more than 40 U.S. and foreign patent, has received numerous awards for his design work, has taught and lectured broadly, served on many boards, has been President of the Industrial Design Society of America, and an IDSA Fellow since 1994. As a distinguished alumnus, Chuck has been involved with the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA since 1968 and is Alumni Chair for San Diego. He has received their George Jorgensen Design Achievement award for his significant contributions.

Chuck is co-founder of The Design Academy, Inc., a multidisciplinary consulting group, dedicated to sharing design and creative knowledge with corporations, educational institutions and organizations.  Chuck is passionate about working with students, researchers and clients to identify cutting edge technologies that can be harnessed through the power of design. As a result of his deep and diverse range of experiences over the past 45 years, Chuck has built an unparalleled global network of collaborators, suppliers and manufacturers.

With the recent launch of Intersection-Inc., an offshoot of The Design Academy, Chuck is responsible for Creative Direction and remains committed to improving businesses and the world through design.