- The UK’s Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC), who aim to accelerate the country’s development of a net-zero automotive industry, have launched a new ‘Academic Advisory Group’.
- The new group, consisting of those from the academia world, will carry out research such as the challenges set to be faced by the UK’s automotive industry, and ways in which the country’s electrification switch can be accelerated.
- The new group consists of 21 members, including professors from universities such as Bath and Oxford, alongside members of government departments such as the Department for Business and Trade, and Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.
New APC group brings the automotive world and academic world closer together
The new group will undertake several activities, including constructing industry insight papers, examining the feasibility of various projects, and participating in the APC’s ‘Future of Technology’ events. The creation of groups such as this new Academic Advisory Group will be crucial for advising on the direction of the country’s automotive sector in the years to come. This is particularly the case, when the APC themselves estimated that the UK will have the capacity to produce over one million electric vehicles by 2035 – which will require in excess of 100GWh worth of batteries.
With the UK’s general election taking place on the 4th of July, eyes will be on The Labour Party’s possible victory – who will commit £1.5bn in funding to help transition the country’s automotive industry to net-zero. No doubt, the Advanced Propulsion Centre will have a heavy involvement in putting this potential pot of money to good use, with the new Academic Advisory Group assisting that.
Philippa Oldham, Stakeholder Engagement Director at the APC, commented:
“In order to sustain and develop the academic engagement that we have generated over the years at the APC the AAG has been created. We are in a unique position to deliver an approach that helps to connect academic communities with industry.
The group acknowledges that the UK Research & Development (R&D) landscape is very busy, and any new initiatives must fill the gaps and add value. One of the focuses of the group is to identify research focus needed to address automotive industry challenges and provide foresight on future disruptive innovation.
The transition to a net zero automotive supply chain, in the UK, demands collaboration. To solve today’s challenges, we need to utilise tomorrow’s innovation and insight. Industry-academia collaboration benefits the sector by providing access to talent, research support, knowledge exchange and innovation.”
