March 9, 2006

NC State Holds First Automotive Industry Workshop in North Carolina

NASCAR is just one of North Carolina’s important connections to the automotive industry. At North Carolina State University more than 60 faculty members conduct research related to the automotive and transportation industries. With research projects that cover every aspect of the industry from design of the fabric on the seats to the design of the roads, experts at NC State work on advances that improve the way America travels.

Industry and government leaders joined NC State researchers on the university campus March 7 for the first Automotive Industry Workshop to explore the most challenging issues facing the automotive industry and ways to collaborate to address those issues. Participants learned about the research capabilities of NC State in automotive and transportation technologies, identified challenges related to global competitiveness and the environment and discussed ways to address the challenges. The event was sponsored by the College of Engineering, the College of Textiles and the university’s Office of Research and Graduate Studies.

Speakers at the event included Richard Dell, director of the Advanced Vehicle Research Center; Cindy Williams, director of technology management at General Motors R&D; and Don Graunstadt, CEO of Lotus Engineering Inc. North America. Panelists included Simon Cobb, director of project planning at Lotus Engineering; Dr. Fred Gallash, Gallash Consulting; Dr. Robert McMahan, senior advisor to the Governor, Science and Technology, State of North Carolina; Williams; and Dell.

Four breakout groups led by NC State faculty members from the colleges of Design, Engineering and Textiles addressed different areas of opportunity in the industry: intelligent vehicle and infrastructure design, advanced automotive materials and manufacturing, advanced powertrains and vehicle performance, and vehicle design and integration.

Key leaders from every aspect of the industry were represented at the workshop, including Automotive Textile Solutions, General Motors, Duke Power, Foard Systems Design, Insight Technologies, Lord Corporation, Nomaco, Omnisys Corporation, RTI International, Southern Research Institute, 3TEX and Walbridge Aldinger. State leaders from the NC Department of Commerce were also present.

The automotive and transportation research resources available at NC State could play a key role in attracting the automotive industry to North Carolina. Organizers will explore the possibility of making the workshop an annual event.

For more information about the workshop, visit http://www.INTRsection.com.

— weston —

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