FUTURE-PROOFING the automotive industry - FP7-Mode

8
Collective challenges in the automotive industry
THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENTS AND THE EU
The challenges faced by the automotive industry –
from dealing with resource scarcity to fighting climate
change – calls for a wide-ranging approach. An
approach that delivers inventiveness in future mobility,
manufacturing and integrated safety. An approach on
which competitive and sustainable vehicles depend.
And for which public funding across EU members
states is crucial and the governments and the EU
have a big role to play...
Cooperation: is necessary between funding bodies
at the national and European level, along with an
integrated exchange of information and ideas.
Learning from each other will help the EU lead the
world in automotive innovation.
Research should build: on the work that has gone
before, and be widely disseminated. This avoids
stagnation and duplication. It requires an immersion in
other research projects, past and present.
Users should be involved: in defining the needs
of freight delivery and different business models
addressed by national- and EU-funded research.
Involving transport and logistics operators as advisors
helps make sure a project effectively helps meet the
needs of supply chain operations.
Easy-to-deploy solutions: are needed to ease supply
chain operations in the short-term. Funding should
be directed at these kinds of projects, where potential
in practice is shown and there’s a potential for fast
market take-up to the benefit of everyday business
operations.
Cross industry perspectives
AEROSPACE AND THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
Meeting the ever-shifting challenges faced by the
automotive industry cannot happen in isolation.
It depends on ongoing and close cross-industry
collaboration. Integrating breakthrough, precisionengineered
technologies is one vital way in which the
industry is meeting the challenges of the 21st-century
head on…
Harnessing aerospace findings helps us to…
• Apply new technologically advanced materials with
superior properties for true automotive innovation
• Develop more streamlined vehicles for people and
businesses
• Work out new ways to protect the environment and
preserve resources
• Improve vehicle safety and security
• Ensure cost-effectiveness
Applications of aerospace
Durable and adaptable multi-material lightweight
design
Sophisticated aerospace designs are helping the
automotive industry move away from costly metal
components, to lightweight, high-performance fibrereinforced
plastic materials.
Future-thinking advantages include:
• Reduced assembly costs
• Less driving resistance
• Minimised fuel consumption
• Better sustainability
• Reduced life cycle costs
Structural health monitoring (SHM)
Remarkable aerospace techniques like SHM capture
data, allowing an ongoing inspection of vehicle
components – so repairs can be made at just the right
time. Benefits include:
• Enhanced vehicle reliability
• Improved performance and maintenance
procedures
• Associated cost savings
Anti-vibration technology
Cutting-edge aeronautical research has made
possible multi-functional components. This has driven
forward innovations in vibration control – in the active
damping of plate vibration in car roof structures, for
example. Benefits include:
• Reduced noise
• Better driving experiences
• Increased efficiency