Earlier this month, Professor Gary Hawley (Dean of the faculty of Engineering and Design) and I led a delegation to Brussels. The purpose of the visit was to explore collaboration opportunities for IAAPS with policy makers, automotive associations and manufacturers and other European Higher Education Institutions. The University has recently invested in a physical presence in Brussels through the Bristol and Bath Brussels Office. This has enabled us to identify organisations and stakeholders who are key to developing and implementing plans to achieve the transition to zero emission mobility.
IAAPS builds on 40 years of expertise in supporting our automotive partners to reduce emissions from their vehicles and comply with increasingly stringent regulations. IAAPS will expand our capability to support our automotive partners across the world. We know that climate change and city gridlock are global challenges. Our trip to Brussels was the first in a series of international visits to raise the profile of IAAPS. We also explored new opportunities for collaboration with key partners who are working in similar or complementary areas to us at Bath.
Our team of highly regarded experts at Bath are working with global manufacturers as well as SMEs to continue to limit the environmental impact of petrol and diesel engines. They will help to drive the technical advancements required for the mass market switch to hybrid and electric vehicles. IAAPS will house technically advanced test facilities so our researchers and collaborative partners can conduct transformational research into future generations of ultra-low and zero emission vehicles.
Our visit to Brussels included meeting with key officials developing climate change and transport policy within the European Commission. We also met MEPS based in the European Parliament, environmental NGOs and associations representing Europe’s car manufacturers and SMEs. Our discussions were varied and fruitful. There was consensus that the best results come when universities, industry and policy-makers work together to apply the most advanced thinking to the global challenges of zero emission personal mobility. We received a friendly and welcoming reception.
IAAPS has been designed with open collaboration in mind. We’re encouraged by this first dedicated visit to reach out to policy makers, industry and universities across Europe. We hope that when IAAPS opens its doors in autumn 2020, our European partners will form an important part of a vibrant and diverse global community united by the commitment to delivering the transition to zero emission mobility.
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