For a long time, the topic of sustainability was mainly discussed and reduced to the aspect of energy generation and energy storage. However, there is a lot more to it: the type of materials we use for our mobility solutions; how and under what conditions they are produced, the route they have to take to get into the product and then ultimately to the end customer; what happens to the material at the end of the product's service life. All these aspects have a significant impact on the sustainability of mobility solutions of the future. Therefore, by conducting various scientific works we are investigating the potential use of new sustainable material concepts for our mobility solutions. Here, too, flexibility and localisation play an essential role.

With our technology partner TechnoCarbon, a spin-off of the University of Munich, we are investigating the use of carbon fibers obtained from algae oil, which even bind COշ from the air during production. In combination with e.g. granite this results in highly exciting properties for mobility solutions as well. (Strength of steel with a specific weight similar to aluminum). Our fiber composite structure also allows the use of natural fibers or other new sustainable material combinations. Our fiber composite structure allows for a high flexibility in terms of using locally available materials, making this unique concept extremely sustainable compared to mass-produced vehicles.

Range is often one of the key criteria in the development and subsequent use of mobility solutions with electric drives. For many applications, you either have far too little energy on board or are driving hundreds of kilos of battery pointlessly.

The modular storage solutions developed with our technology partner Unicorn Energy open up completely new possibilities for new business models in the field of e-mobility. Flexible storage for logistics applications or car sharing, direct reuse or parallel use in a second use (e.g. storage for a photovoltaic system), 100% safety through a unique battery management system and independence from cell chemistry make this system a highly exciting system in terms of economic and ecological sustainability.

The ability to design the vehicle structure flexibly, even for small quantities, means that we can consider the topic of energy storage for corresponding solutions completely independently of the e-mobility solution. If a fuel cell makes sense for certain applications in certain regions, we can also integrate it sensibly into a vehicle concept for small quantities.

Together with our technology partner, we even have a system at the prototype stage here that makes it possible to combine batteries and mobile fuel cells flexibly and in a modular fashion. The vehicle concept can thus respond much more flexibly to specific range requirements or infrastructure.

We are convinced that when choosing the right drive for mobility solutions in urban environments, it is not a matter of extreme acceleration or high final speeds, but of factors such as economy, mobility, space utilisation and robustness. Automotive suppliers such as our technology partner Schäffler are therefore working on 48V system solutions for this application. A 48V In Wheel drive, for example, offers some crucial advantages for urban use in many applications. With the highly innovative CornerDrive, Schäffler shows where the journey can go here. An entire module with the necessary integrated peripherals could be used in our vehicles. Of course, conventional electric drives in the high-voltage range are also possible.

Networking is more and more important in the area of fleet customers, making the difference of whether a concept is successful or not. The flexibility to have the best solution for an application and a location can be the key competitive advantage. Hardware and software are developing much faster in this field in particular than in other areas. From our point of view, vehicle solutions are needed that allow flexible use of the latest hardware and software. One good example is a permanently installed navigation system in a vehicle. It is not only expensive but very often already outdated by the time the vehicle is finalised. The UMECS concept allows for a design of the vehicle to ensure that you are always up-to-date when it comes to connectivity. No need to buy a new vehicle every few months in order to use state-of-the-art technology.

AI-based IoT environments for intelligent energy and fleet management are the key to success when it comes to the fleet solutions of the future. This area of future mobility is also developing at breakneck speed. Flexible solutions are the order of the day just as much in this field. Together with our technology partners, we can generate solutions that keep you at the cutting edge. Hardware is becoming less and less important as the cornerstone of mobility solutions and business models. The share of software development, networking and digital business models will continue to increase significantly. In our view, the UMECS approach of developing simple, robust, usage-oriented hardware is the answer to this challenge.

If you would like to learn more about the technologies we use and the innovations we have in the pipeline, please feel free to contact us.

We look forward to hearing from you!