Additive manufacturing specialist HiETA Technologies has received £1.7million to lead a project developing new lighter vehicle components made from advanced aluminum alloys.
The project is part of a £38.2 million UK government prize to develop light weighting technology for automotive.
‘Our £38 million investment will help Britain become a world leader in this exciting and valuable technology sector, creating skilled jobs of the future as part of our long-term economic plan,’ claimed UK transport minister Andrew Jones. ‘It will also mean lower running costs for motorists and less fuel consumption, which is good for the environment and our economy.’
The winning projects were chosen following a competition launched last September encouraging companies to propose innovative ideas to cut vehicle emissions. The funding combines £30 million from the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) with £8.2 million of additional funding from Innovate UK, who will support the schemes. The aim is to begin unveiling working prototypes by 2018 and passenger cars from 2020.
Leading edge
‘UK businesses have a great opportunity to be at the leading edge of the global drive to increase efficiency and reduce emissions from our vehicles,’ said Roland Meister, head of transport at Innovate UK. ‘This £38m of government support means that more than 130 innovative organisations right across the country now have the chance to get their ideas off the drawing board and potentially into the cars and trucks of the future, boosting the economy by at least £532 million in the process.’
This story uses material from HiETA, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
