Jan G. Smith
Encyclopedia
Jan Gustav Salomon Smith, born 19 June 1895 in Stockholm, Sweden, died 30 April 1966 in Stockholm. In the literature he is known as Jan G. Smith. He was an engineer with a M.Sc. degree from KTH, Stockholm. For many years he worked in the American automobile industry and returned to Sweden in 1924. His experiences from the American automobile industry was probably the main reason why Gustav Larson
asked him to join the team of engineers that started the design work for Volvo's first automobile, ÖV 4
, in 1924. He worked for Gustav Larson in the temporary "design office" in Gustav Larsons private flat in Stockholm about a year. A lot of Jan G. Smith's original drawings for the Volvo ÖV4, the gearbox, the main chassi components and technical papers that he had collected in America in the form of a private design book, are saved in the archive of the National Museum of Science and Technology, Stockholm
, Sweden
. After the Volvo project he was employed by ASEA
in Västerås
and later worked for the same company in Stockholm. Jan was replaced in the Volvo project by engineer Henry Westerberg that stayed with Volvo as a designer until 1980 at the age of 79 when he was retired.
Jan G. Smith was awarded a gold medal in 1929 by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA), together with Gustav Larson, "for their contribution to the national automobile industry in Sweden".
Gustav Larson
Erik Gustaf Larson was a Swedish engineer and co-founder of Volvo.Family: Married to Elin Octavia Fröberg, 1918. Four children: Erik, Anders, Gunnel and Britt....
asked him to join the team of engineers that started the design work for Volvo's first automobile, ÖV 4
Volvo ÖV 4
Volvo ÖV 4 is the first car built by Volvo. The designation ÖV4 stands for , "Öppen Vagn 4 cylindrar" in Swedish, which means Open Carriage 4 cylinders. The model ÖV4 was often referred to as "Jakob" but that was just a name for one of the 10 pre-series ÖV4 that was ready on July 25 Jakob's name-day...
, in 1924. He worked for Gustav Larson in the temporary "design office" in Gustav Larsons private flat in Stockholm about a year. A lot of Jan G. Smith's original drawings for the Volvo ÖV4, the gearbox, the main chassi components and technical papers that he had collected in America in the form of a private design book, are saved in the archive of the National Museum of Science and Technology, Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. After the Volvo project he was employed by ASEA
ASEA
Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget was a Swedish industry company. It merged with the Swiss Brown, Boveri & Cie in 1988 to form Asea Brown Boveri...
in Västerås
Västerås
Västerås is a city in central Sweden, located on the shore of Lake Mälaren in the province Västmanland, some 100 km west of Stockholm...
and later worked for the same company in Stockholm. Jan was replaced in the Volvo project by engineer Henry Westerberg that stayed with Volvo as a designer until 1980 at the age of 79 when he was retired.
Jan G. Smith was awarded a gold medal in 1929 by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA), together with Gustav Larson, "for their contribution to the national automobile industry in Sweden".