Industry Network
The chair "Production Engineering of E-Mobility Components" (PEM) of RWTH Aachen University operates in a strong network with national and international partners from industry. Through globally active collaborations, the PEM team continuously develops all of its disciplines – the electric motor, the battery, the fuel cell, truck electrification and micromobility.
Studies and joint development: Best practice in all disciplines
In the field of batteries, PEM supports "Daimler Truck" in setting up a complete "InnoLab Battery"; with Henkel, the RWTH institution is active in the fields of battery testing and recycling, among others; with LKQ Europe, a joint study on battery circular economy has been produced; and together with the company Roland Berger, the Battery Monitor has been launched, for example. Meanwhile, first works such as the brochure "Recycling of Lithium-Ion Batteries" and the "Battery Atlas" were published with the VDMA specialist association "Battery Production". With Marelli as well as with the "Ford Research And Innovation Center Aachen", PEM researchers are devoting themselves to aspects in the field of electric motors, while in collaboration with the VDMA working group "Fuel Cells", the Aachen-based company AE Driven Solutions and the DEVK subsidiary "HyLane" the focus lies on hydrogen technology. Together with the Aachen-based partner Velocity, PEM is also developing micromobility solutions such as a robot for flexible automatic charging of electric vehicles. On an international level, the RWTH chair collaborates with PEM Motion in Sacramento, California/USA, and in San Luis Potosí and Monterrey, Mexico, as well as with Automobility Enterprises in Ontario, Canada, among other partners.
Co-developing Great Britains' battery industrialization center
A prime example of PEM networking even far beyond national borders is the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC) in Coventry where the PEM team assisted in the early planning phase and helped design the facilities and buildings for the 150 million euros project. Close ties to the facility also exist through former PEM employees who now work at UKBIC, which – from mixing to formation and end-of-line testing – is home to a complete cell production facility, including module and pack manufacturing, with its own laboratory. The unique facility provides the missing link between battery technology, which has proved promising at laboratory or prototype scale, and successful mass production. The publicly-funded battery product development facility welcomes manufacturers, entrepreneurs, researchers and educators, and is a key part of the Faraday Battery Challenge (FBC), a UK government program to accelerate the development of cost-effective, high-performance, durable, safe, low-weight and recyclable batteries.
PEM also maintains a strong research network and is always open to new ideas and partnerships. An exchange with the RWTH chair is therefore always welcome.