eShadow is an £8.5 million project - including £4.1 million in Government grant funding - aiming to develop a lightweight chassis design for electric commercial that significantly improves payload capacity without compromising durability or cost-effectiveness. Listen to this in-depth interview with late Professor Alan Banks, to whom we dedicate this episode. As UK Lightweight Innovations Manager at Ford, he had a central role in this project, and he is sorely missed. More information, and a vide...
Dec 20, 2024•14 min•Ep. 33
The APC, on behalf of the Automotive Council UK, has updated its roadmaps for 2024. The highly-anticipated documents chart a path to a net-zero future, and give clarity to help you navigate through where the innovations will be in the next decade and beyond. Reporting from Cenex Expo, the UK auto industry's showcase of zero-emission and connected automated mobility, Clem Silverman asked people why it's important to look ahead and how useful roadmapping exercises are to the industry. Including: J...
Sep 26, 2024•19 min•Ep. 32
What happens to an EV battery when it reaches the end of its life? It's re-born! The destiny of batteries is not landfill, but to be recycled to extract the critical minerals and go into new products. Although in its infancy, this is an industry with an exciting future ahead of it. On reaching end-of-life, batteries can be discharged, dismantled and shredded to produce black mass, a rich source of critical minerals such as lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese. If profitably extracted and proces...
Jul 15, 2024•17 min•Ep. 31
Why did BMW choose a team of British small businesses and academics to design the next-generation of inverters for its battery electric vehicles? Energy and transport journalist David James interviews David Bock, BMW Technical Lead on the £26 million @FutureBEV project, who explains it's down to the UK's expertise in power electronics. “If you can make the parts simpler, you reduce the cost, you improve the reliability and you make it more accessible. And that was very important in the project",...
Jul 11, 2024•19 min•Ep. 30
What is an e-turbo? What's a turbo doing in a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain? Transport and energy journalist David James visits Laith Al-kazaz, Advanced Engineering Director at Cummins to learn about this technology, developed by a £20 million project to capture wasted energy and put it back into use. Known as 'Trident', this project aimed to increase efficiency in hydrogen fuel cells through the development of an e-turbo, a vital component to help decarbonise heavy-duty vehicles. The project ha...
Jun 12, 2024•17 min•Ep. 29
Is the UK focusing its efforts in the right areas when it comes to e-motors technology and the UK supply chain? Strategic Trends Manager at the APC, Chris Jones, speaks to our Stakeholder Engagement Lead, Clem Silverman, to give his thoughts and to discuss some of the key trends raised in our latest value chain report on e-motors. You can read the full report here: Electric motors: Is the UK placing its bets wisely? (apcuk.co.uk)...
May 28, 2024•20 min•Ep. 28
It’s well known that lithium is a hugely important resource for battery technology. But what is it used for? Where does it come from? Dr. Chris Jones from the APC’s Technology Trends team is back in the booth for this episode of the Road to Net Zero to answer some of these questions. Nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) and lithium ferrophosphate (LFP) based chemistries are expected to be the two most popular cathode chemistries for the coming decade. NMC comprises lithium, nickel, manganese and cobalt...
Mar 25, 2024•17 min•Ep. 27
Ford’s vehicle transmission factory at Halewood on Merseyside is being transformed to build electric power units for future Ford all-electric passenger and commercial vehicles in Europe. Once complete this year, the line will produce over 400,000 units per year. The site at Halewood was competing for investment with others in Europe, but with a grant and support by the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC)-managed Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF) from the UK Government, Ford decided to go ahea...
Jan 24, 2024•9 min•Ep. 26
Imerys British Lithium has discovered 161 million tonnes of lithium ore in the granite beneath a Cornish clay mine, which could produce 20 kilotonnes of refined lithium per year for 30 years. The UK Government’s Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF), managed by the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC), has supported a pilot processing plant at the same location. Creating a local supply chain of critical materials for UK industry is important to meet rising demand, especially in electric vehicle ba...
Jan 17, 2024•10 min•Ep. 25
What kind of journey has the automotive sector's been on over the past decade, and why might a 'UK Tesla' be a way off yet? The second of our two-part podcast marking our 10-year anniversary. We're joined by three automotive experts, Bob Dover, Prof. Neville Jackson, and Prof. Colin Garner who sit on the APC's board. 2023 is an incredibly special year for us. Established in 2013 to bridge the gap between industry, academia and government, our mission remains to leverage the UK’s rich legacy for ...
Dec 21, 2023•26 min•Ep. 24
How has the investment environment changed over the 10 years since the APC's foundation? This is the first in a two-part podcast episode in which the APC board members have gathered round the microphones to reflect on the past decade and how things are shaping up for the future. We are joined by finance experts Charles Haswell and Geoffrey Bicknell to discuss investment in the automotive sector, and how the net zero transition presented new opportunities for investors. 2023 is an incredibly spec...
Nov 28, 2023•27 min•Ep. 23
🔋 This is the latest Battery Value Chain Insight report from our Technology Trends team. Explained by Strategic Trends Manager Dr Chris Jones, it highlights the challenges for manufacturers and aims to help them to make smarter, more informed plans, for the future of automotive battery manufacturing in the UK. UK Automotive manufacturers have tough decisions to make about what type of battery chemistry they plan to use in their Electric Vehicles (EVs) in the future, impacted by changing regulat...
Nov 09, 2023•20 min•Ep. 22
The Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC) is well known for its role in deploying UK government grant funding for research and development and scale-up, to support the automotive industry’s transition to zero tailpipe emissions and net-zero vehicles. But we at the APC are not just about funding, we’re as much about the connections and collaborations we foster to really add value. One such example is the success story of an SME from Belfast. Ionic Technologies , a 2014 spinout company from Queens U...
Oct 26, 2023•21 min•Ep. 21
Did you know November 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the Advanced Propulsion Centre? We’re planning a series of events and content leading up to our 10th birthday in November. In early September, we hosted a session at Cenex Low Carbon Vehicle – Cenex Connected Automated Mobility Show to celebrate the achievements and milestones of the past decade, alongside our business partners and colleagues. We invited some key stakeholders to join us in a panel discussion focused on the decade ahead and...
Sep 27, 2023•43 min•Ep. 20
A new collaborative research and development project, led by Ford, has recently been announced as part of the APC's latest round of funding: the £16 million Fuel cell Commercial Vehicle Generation 2.0 (FCVGen2.0) project. It aims to design, develop, and build a fleet of 8 hydrogen fuel cell powered E-Transit vans. Other members of the consortium include several SMEs and two other multinationals. They are Cygnet Texkimp, Cammotive and Viritech, as well as grocers Ocado and a subsidiary of energy ...
Jul 27, 2023•14 min•Ep. 19
Can electric vehicle batteries be repaired, recycled and reused? What solutions are available to industry? An important collaborative research and development project aims to create a circular supply chain for electric vehicle batteries in the UK. Currently, most end-of-life battery packs are shipped outside of the UK for treatment, at significant cost. Not only is this unsustainable, but it exports valuable metals which can be recovered for future use in the UK. The RECOVAS project, led by EMR ...
Jun 23, 2023•9 min•Ep. 18
Did you get chance to read our last quarterly demand report for 2022/23, published at the end of March? If not, make sure to listen to our Technology Trends team take you through the key talking points and highlights. Read the Q4 2022 Automotive Industry Quarterly Demand Report: https://www.apcuk.co.uk/q4-2022-automotive-industry-demand-forecast/ With so much happening right now in the industry, our demand reports are a comprehensive and informative overview of forecasting based on current marke...
Jun 15, 2023•10 min•Ep. 17
This tractor is running on methane captured from cow slurry. The world’s first 100% methane-powered tractor has been developed through a project that received £9.1 million in government funding from the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC). Running on biomethane fuel made from recovered cow dung, the tractor could help save farmers money, reduce GHG emissions and support sustainable farming of local produce. It can also advance development of a more sustainable circular economy in agriculture. The s...
Apr 27, 2023•13 min•Ep. 16
This is a very special episode that takes a deep-dive into the complex subject of power electronics. The Advanced Propulsion Centre recently released a new 'value chain map' to breakdown the mystery of semiconductor manufacturing, which is available now to download. https://www.apcuk.co.uk/power-electronics-value-chain-launched-to-kick-start-robust-uk-supply-chain/ Availability of semiconductors already posing a problem for UK automotive OEMs No UK end-to-end supply chain to meet needs of automo...
Mar 31, 2023•35 min•Ep. 15
Oxford RF has developed the world’s first 360-degree solid-state radar system. The sensors aim to reduce costs and increase reliability for advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and driverless vehicles, ultimately leading to more of these on the road. As CEO Dr Kashif Siddiq explains, there are currently too many sensors on vehicles – including cameras, radars and LiDARs. More sensors mean more cost, power consumption and more data to process which increases the latency in decision-making. F...
Feb 16, 2023•21 min•Ep. 14
Despite the disappointing news for the automotive sector early this year, there are plenty of opportunities and things to look forward to in 2023. Listen to the latest Road to Net Zero episode with the views of APC CEO, Ian Constance.
Jan 27, 2023•11 min•Ep. 13
How did Norfolk-based Equipmake develop a world-leading electric drivetrain? And build a £400 million pipeline? And grow from 15 to 75 employees? And float on the Aquis Stock Exchange (AQSE)? By taking part in an APC-funded collaborative research and development project, of course! Equipmake CEO Ian Foley speaks to transport and energy journalist David James about the company's recent success and how it has benefited from the APC funding. Equipmake built the motors for the Ariel Hipercar (featur...
Nov 24, 2022•16 min•Ep. 12
New technologies create ultimate hipercar This is the Ariel Hipercar, a battery electric vehicle designed to outperform any internal combustion engine road car, but in a zero-emission package. It was launched September 2022. The Hipercar was part funded through an APC collaborative research and development project with a total project value of £12.3 million, receiving £6.1 million of government funding. Listen to this interview with Simon Saunders, Director, Ariel Motor Company, who says: “These...
Nov 01, 2022•22 min•Ep. 11
The UK is in a strong position to lead future battery cell innovations for the automotive sector, according to the latest insight from the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC). Former-APC technology trends strategist Jon Regnart explains more about this report and its key findings, which include: The automotive sector will dominate future battery demand, driving battery innovation. There are three broad clusters of batteries emerging in the global automotive industry. Eight promising cell innovation...
Oct 17, 2022•16 min•Ep. 10
Wrightbus' double-decker Hydroliner and hydrogen single-deck demonstrator are boosting orders internationally and already showing returns on investment. This APC-supported project is developing both the vehicles and the refuelling ecosystem all at once. It’s part of a collaborative research and development programme with Queen's University Belfast, Grayson Thermal Systems and Translink Northern Ireland & Ryse Hydrogen. In this episode, hear Neil Collins, CEO of Wrightbus discuss the project ...
Oct 03, 2022•11 min•Ep. 9
Reveals, announcements and interviews. In this special episode of the Road to Net Zero we take a listen back to the best bits from the recent Cenex Low Carbon Vehicle and Connected Autonomous Mobility (LCV CAM) show, which took place on 7-8 September 2022. As well as it being the 15th anniversary of the event, the APC once again supported the UK Government Pavilion stand, featuring the amazing projects and latest in green tech innovation we support in the automotive sector. In this episode: Arie...
Sep 29, 2022•26 min•Ep. 8
Hydrogen in automotive. An APC-funded project, led by Tevva Hydrogen Electric Trucks in partnership with Advanced Electric Machines Ltd, has demonstrated the need for and developed a hydrogen fuel cell range extender to combat the current requirement for heavy batteries. This is a major step forward in the development of viable low-carbon heavy-duty transport. Hear Asher Bennett, founder and CEO of Tevva Hydrogen Electric Trucks discuss how the UK can benefit from this opportunity. Watch the vid...
Sep 05, 2022•17 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Hydrogen in automotive. Intelligent Energy is looking to commercialise its hydrogen technology. It’s working with a consortium of UK-based companies to develop a cost-effective and efficient supply chain. Hear from Ashley Kells, Programme Director at Intelligent Energy, as he explains how hydrogen fuel cells are a good solution for applications that can’t use battery –electric and why government funding is important to accelerate development in this sector.
Aug 30, 2022•18 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Hydrogen in automotive. Nick Owen, Technical Director at Dolphin N2, explains how they have used ‘ThermoPower’ technology to use up to 30% less diesel in an engine, with the ability to use a range of fuels that don’t compromise efficiency or air quality. By running on hydrogen, this split-cycle engine can eliminate CO2 emissions with lower NOx output. Listen to the full interview conducted by energy and transport journalist David James.
Aug 22, 2022•15 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Hydrogen in automotive. Why should we use hydrogen to power our vehicles (and not just batteries)? What is the size of the economic opportunity for hydrogen in the automotive sector, how do we make it affordable, how do we invest in it, and build it up to commercialisation? This week the APC's CEO Ian Constance is back, being interviewed by energy and transport journalist David James, as he answers these questions and discusses the work we do to accelerate opportunities for hydrogen technology t...
Aug 15, 2022•16 min•Season 1Ep. 4
