Solar Team Eindhoven Builds New Solar Car on the Brainport Industries Campus

The students will have a place in the so-called ‘Factory of the Future’, where they will start building the fourth innovative solar car on 1 March 2019.

Part of the students of Solar Team Eindhoven will exchange their offices on the TU/e campus for workshops on the BIC. The team consists of 27 students and has been designing a new solar-powered family car since September, with which they will appear at the start of the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge in October 2019. To realise the design, the team will enter into a unique collaboration with the BIC; the place where innovative high-tech companies and institutions join forces. Therefore, the solar car will be entirely produced in Eindhoven for the first time, which will bring many benefits for the students.

More than one production site

The enormous building at BIC not only offers enough space to build a solar car, but also provides plenty of opportunities, according to Carijn Mulder. “For example, we are setting up collaborations with students of the Summa Colleague for milling work, and ENGIE supports us in setting up the workplace. The fact that facilities, knowledge and the drive to innovate come together makes BIC an ideal place for us to realise our dream.”

Product of an ecosystem

Ferdinand Gremmen of SDK Vastgoed, developer of the BIC, welcomes the students: “It’s great news that the Solar Team Eindhoven is coming to the BIC. The car that will be built by the team is a perfect example of high mix, high complexity, low volume, where innovation comes first.”

“This is exactly what the Brainport Industries Campus stands for as ‘Factory of the Future’. And that is what the arrival of the team brings to life. Moreover, we want the other campus residents to think along with us with their knowledge, skills and expertise. In this way, the car that will be the start in Australia in October will become a product of our ecosystem.”

Not something that goes without saying

A sustainable, accessible and comfortable production location is not something that goes without saying for the student team. Previous teams have built cars in harsh conditions in all corners of the country. Carijn Mulder: “We need an oven the size of a sea container, and they are not easy to find, which is why for the production of the Stella Vie some team members lived in a mobile home for weeks. A production site in Eindhoven is essential for improving the team process.”

About Brainport Industries Campus

The Brainport Industries Campus is a development and production location for companies and knowledge institutions in the high-tech sector. Each building offers facilities that can be used by multiple parties. The layout can easily be adapted to the changing needs of users. BIC facilitates its tenants optimally in cooperation with new production techniques. The campus is also suitable to show (international) visitors what the manufacturing industry in the region has to offer.

The Brainport Industries Campus is located near Eindhoven Airport, the A2/N2 and the Beatrixkanaal. The total surface area is 200 hectares, and there are five large industrial buildings build on a third of it. Brainport Industries Campus is a development and realisation of SDK Vastgoed on behalf of VOF BIC and is a collaboration with governments and industry.

For renting space on BIC, please contact the Eindhoven offices of JLL (+31 (0)40-250 0100).