NCJ Number
144258
Journal
Law and Order Volume: 41 Issue: 7 Dated: (July 1993) Pages: 39-44
Date Published
1993
Length
6 pages
Annotation
In order to promote community involvement, many police departments have reevaluated their vehicle designs in order to balance the desire for approachability with the need to ensure officers' credibility and authority.
Abstract
The typical vehicle design selection team consists of the police chief, senior staff, and safety and maintenance personnel as well as equipment installation contractors. Materials used to enhance any public safety vehicle exterior treatment must be able to withstand heavy use under widely varying road conditions and be easily removed to avoid reducing the vehicle's resale value. An interview with a spokesman from 3M, a company with over 30 years of experience in manufacturing government vehicle image and identification materials, covered issues ranging from design options and cost-containment strategies to materials, emergency vehicle graphics production, and computer-based design kits.