By Katie Strachan
The Oshawa Express

Oshawa’s university has hit the turbo boost button as it pushes forward with its research plans for an electric vehicle (EV) – thanks to $2.6 million in funding from the federal government and General Motors Canada.
“This builds on the infrastructure funding received last year and is a significant investment in our future,” says University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) President Dr. Ronald Bordessa.
“It will allow us to take a leadership role in the training of next-generation automotive engineers who will be equipped with the skills to design the cars of the future.”
The government’s investment will facilitate research which will further improve the function of HVAC systems in electric vehicles, says UOIT in a release.
By improving the function of the HVAC systems, students will learn how to extend vehicle travel range and provide longer lasting battery charges in the next generation of vehicles, says Dr. Greg Rohrauer, assistant professor with the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science.

“We’re very excited…it puts us at the forefront of the reinvention of the automotive powertrain,” says Dr. Rohrauer.
In addition to the funding from the Canadian government, General Motors Canada will also contribute $1.4 million in the form of cash and in-kind assistance like providing material and resource expertise over the life of the electric vehicle project.
The project at UOIT is the first research project to be announced under the Automotive Partnership Canada (ACP) initiative that was announced last April, the release states.
“Our globally experienced researchers are already hard at work on projects for the betterment of society and this funding will further enable them to revolutionize the automotive industry,” adds Dr. Bordessa.
Funding for the federal government’s portion of the project will come from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) to the tune of $763,340 – and the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) will give $430,446.
“EV’s have the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” says Dr. Rohrauer.

“We are very excited to work with the GM team on this project.”
Minister of Industry Tony Clement says the announcement is great news for the auto sector.
“I know the past year and a half have been filled with economic uncertainty and we know the auto sector has faced its share of it,” he says, adding the EV project will create jobs in the future.
“I know there’s greater potential to come (from the project).”
The research project will help develop ways to make the automobiles of tomorrow lighter and more fuel-efficient, while improving overall energy consumption.
UOIT’s focus will be on developing the new technology required to do this, the release states.

“We continue to be best in class when it comes to manufacturing,” says Minister Clement of Canada as a whole.
“What we are seeing today…it is the renaissance of the manufacturing sector.”
Suzanne Fortier, president of NSERC says she couldn’t agree more.
“These are ambitious projects but they are the kind of projects we need,” she explains.
“It is really inspiring and exciting to see this.”