| Oxford's Automotive Cluster |
| Sunday, 30 October 2011 10:43 | |
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The Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) recently identified the county's automotive cluster as one of its four 'premier league' clusters, so a Cleantech Cluster event on this theme (hosted by the Oxford-based law firm Manches on 19 October 2011) was very timely. Attendees - and panelists - came from Oxfordshire and beyond. As Martin Dare-Edwards, Chairman of the Oxfordshire LEP and one of the panellists on the evening, commented, in the context of the automotive cluster: "the border of Oxfordshire is permeable". Dare-Edwards is also the UK Country Manager for Infineum, an important employer in Oxfordshire (and a company which we profiled in a recent issue of Cleantech magazine: Fuel Economy Focus: Infineum: A Hidden Cleantech Gem).
The Oxfordshire county border runs very close to Silverstone - which itself straddles the county borders of Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire. Silverstone, a centre of excellence for the UK motor industry, is the headquarters of Delta Motorsport - whose E4 Coupe was on display outside the venue. (Nick Carpenter of Delta Motorsport, another panellist, lives in Oxfordshire.) The renowned universities within the City of Oxford also have a keen interest in the automotive industry. The Delta Motorsport E4 contains engines designed by Oxford Yasa Motors, a spinout from the University of Oxford.
Interactive document which charts the progress of the OEVC. With all of this automotive expertise in the region, and throughout the UK, it perhaps came as something of a surprise to hear from keynote speaker, Dr Kegang Wu (Chief China Advisor at the British Chambers of Commerce and Executive Director of the LinkToChina project) of the perception in China that the UK no longer has an automotive industry. Dr Wu spoke about China's expansion plans in electric vehicles and the latest on China's automotive market and also discussed the LinkToChina project - which was established in order to encourage Chinese investment in the UK industry (see feature in Cleantech magazine: China identifies EV potential in Oxfordshire). The panel, which also included Giles Clifford, a Partner at Manches, discussed the potential for clean automotive technology to build upon the region's strong motor industry heritage - with all the potential benefits in terms of employment. One project which is focusing attention on the region is the Bridgestone Eco-Rally, an annual showcase for electric, hybrid and biofuel vehicles and energy efficiency in transport. Oxford was the starting point for the rally in July this year - and the final panelist, Eco-Rally Co-Founder, Mike Whelan, confirmed that it will return to Oxford in 2012. Video of the 2011 Bridgestone Eco-Rallyx
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Extensive research is also taking place at Oxford Brooks University - which was represented on the panel by Allan Hutchinson, Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Head of the Sustainable Vehicle Engineering Centre. Allan spoke about Oxfordshire's electric vehicle programme and the Oxfordshire Electric Vehicle Consortium (OEVC), which was formed last year from the core members of the successful MINI E project. Allan discussed how the creation of the OEVC has secured Oxford’s place as one of the Energy Technology Institute’s (ETI’s) ‘J’ Electric cities. A MINI E, manufactured by Oxfordshire-based BMW MINI, was also on display at the event.
