Sectoral Collaborators
All grand challenges faced by Pakistan, including that of energy shortage, energy insecurity and non- sustainable transport systems requires concerted cross-disciplinary and cross-sectoral (transdisciplinary) efforts. For any transdisciplinary work to perform well, cross-sectoral, and industrial collaborations are a necessity. This project is positioned to offer practice-based research that is embedded in the industrial reality of Pakistan’s current vehicle and battery manufacturing capabilities.
The list of industrial (sectoral) collaborators listed below is not exhaustive, but indicative of the nature of collaborators – namely industrial entities with battery manufacturing capabilities (and thereby an understanding of bottlenecks, costing and possible local indigenous routes to supply chain development) and local electric vehicle manufacturers (which bring to the fore critical knowledge of both manufacturing and market dynamics of the industry that this research aims to change).
The current indicative list is expected to expand as we reach out to and provide knowledge-based products and support to an increasing number of industrial partners over the course of the research project (see Section VI: Project Sustainability). However, our current industrial collaborators: Jolta, Daewoo Batteries and Sazgar Autos represent the best in the market – both in terms of market coverage, access to technology, but also development of local technology and affordable, contextually-sensitive products for the local market (such as EV rikshaws and light bikes – that Sazgar Autos has developed). Access to their data and expertise is expected to provide critical inputs for the technological development and marketability of the EV components (e.g., cell, battery packs, battery management systems, motors, etc.) that this project aims to develop over a period of three years.
The very reach and market awareness of our current (and expanding network of industrial collaborators) remains one of the biggest advantages of this transdisciplinary project. While the sectoral partners do not have a financial contribution to the project, their heir expertise and practice will be leveraged, observed, and transferred through various student engagements such as graduate and undergraduate projects and internships. This strengthens linkages between higher education institutions of caliber such as NUST and LUMS and sectoral stakeholders – and furthers the impact of academic research. This contribution alone can prove to be extremely valuable towards the development of critical, useful skillsets for local EV market development (a key target of this research project).
Sazgar and Jolta will be engaged in EV Power Train and Energy Storage System design while the Daewoo Batteries will provide technical assistance in battery cell manufacturing for this study. Further details of their parts are given in Section V Table 2.
