Siemens Targets Electric Car Business

Introduced atthe China Electric Vehicle Symposium in October 2010, Siemens' Inside ElectricCars business unit has as its goal to be one of the world's principal providersof key components for automobiles and light commercial vehicles powered only byelectricity. Inside Electric Cars is part of Siemens' Drive TechnologiesDivision and will initially focus on electric motors, inverters and onboardcharging systems.

Siemens choseto announce the launch of the new business unit at the China Electric VehicleSymposium largely due to the government of Shenzhen's recent announcement of plansto spend $30 billion RNB (about U.S. $4.5 billion) to adapt its infrastructureto support more electric vehicle use - targeted largely at mass and personaltransportation as well as charging stations.

The InsideElectric Cars division is headquartered in Erlangen, Germany, and also has additionaldevelopment capabilities in Shanghai.

Other majorindustrial players also targeting the burgeoning electric car market includeBosch, Mitsubishi, Continental, and Delphi.

" The aim of the Inside Electric Carsdivision is to provide a wide range of electric motors and power electronicsproducts for electrically driven serial production automobiles suited to thevarying needs of individual automobile manufacturers," says MichaelSiebert, head of communications for the Siemens Inside Electric Cars division. 

Pointingout that this new venture into the electric car business is being built onSiemens' more than 100 years of electric motors experience, Siebert says InsideElectric Cars will work toward developing better motors for electricvehicles with a single speed gearbox as well as developing multi-motorconcepts.

Siebert adds that Siemensis evaluating an expansion of the division to address additional electricalcomponents and subsystems.

Currently, thenew division is in theproduct development process together with customers and technologypartners.  Siemens expects that when ajoint concept is agreed upon, the start of series production will typicallytake at least 36 months, according to Siebert. Initial product development willfocus on new electric vehicle powertrains.

Also involvedwith Siemens' Inside Electric Cars initiative are the company's Smart Gridinitiative (part of Siemens Energy division), through which recharginginfrastructure will be developed to support electric cars and the management ofstored power when cars are plugged in and recharging; OSRAM for LED carlighting; and Siemens PLM for lifecycle design.