A clear commitment of the automotive industry to the Paris Climate Agreement, not with words, but rather through action. In my opinion, that is the key message that IAA 2019 is sending. The electric car is moving from its eco niche to mass production. Considering only Germany, up to 10.5 million electric cars are expected to be on the road in 2030, according to the German Association of the Automotive Industry.
A few things must happen for this target to be reached. In addition to establishing a nationwide charging infrastructure, there has to be a significant reduction of the purchase price of an electric car, which is currently felt to be still too high by many customers. As a system partner of the automotive OEMs, we can contribute our part. I believe that it is possible in the coming decade to reduce the costs for high-voltage wiring systems by around one third. The keyword for the path that LEONI wants to take is “complexity reduction”. What do I mean by that?
Optimization of the high-voltage wiring system
Until recently, most battery-powered electric vehicles are still based on modular platforms, which were optimized for combustion engines and at the same time were supposed to enable a production that was as flexible as possible using different drive trains. Vehicles with gasoline, diesel and natural gas engines together with their appropriate tanks were supposed to be manufactured on the same production line as full and plug-in hybrids and pure electric cars – a completely rational approach for a time when customer acceptance for electrified drives was still uncertain.
The platforms of most manufacturers were quasi “electrically retrofitted,” in other words, the electrical components were subsequently housed wherever the required assembly space could be found. In one of our customer projects for example, this resulted in positioning the power electronics and the electric motor of a plug-in hybrid vehicle on two different axles of the vehicle. You might assume that we as a producer of wiring systems would be happy if as much cable as possible were used in a vehicle. Since LEONI, however, sees itself as a system partner of the automotive manufacturers, we want to achieve an overall optimum. For battery-powered electric vehicles that are manufactured in larger quantities, this optimum would be in platforms that have been specifically developed for electric vehicles. Characteristic for such platforms is a large traction battery positioned between the axles as well as an increasing spatial integration of the drive components. If a high-voltage wiring system is optimized for this design, it may be possible to significantly reduce the complexity.
Gentlemen
It is clear to everyone that the questions of orientation in this direction and quickly is no longer just luxury, but this challenge has become questions of survival in light of the great competition among car makers in this regard
There is no doubt that exploring the possibility of cooperation with German Leoni’s clients in particular can receive special attention from the German government, especially in light of the terrible race between the United States and China in this regard and Germany should never stay behind in this race with all its long-established well perception in the automotive industry
Being a member of Leoni family
Wishing you all the best