YPSILANTI – The American Center for Mobility (ACM) has signed an agreement with Michigan Technological University to partner on engineering services at its 500-acre proving ground for advancing safe, sustainable, and secure technologies in Ypsilanti.
Michigan Technological University has been selected as the new engineering services provider for the American Center for Mobility (ACM), reinforcing its pivotal role in the automotive field. Through renowned facilities like the Advanced Power Systems Laboratories (APS LABS), the Keweenaw Research Center (KRC) and the Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI), the university has built a record of excellence in sustainable vehicle technologies and advanced mobility solutions. Leveraging its cutting-edge research and development, testing programs, and industry expertise, Michigan Tech will offer comprehensive engineering services to ACM’s customers.
Michigan Tech and ACM have worked together for years to advance safe, sustainable, and secure technologies utilizing the technical expertise of the combined teams and the extensive capabilities available at ACM’s 500-acre proving grounds facility in Ypsilanti. Together Michigan Tech and ACM have collaborated to secure $20M in joint federal funding to date. We are confident in Michigan Tech’s ability to enhance our capabilities and drive forward our mission of advancing mobility technologies. We look forward to the continued success and groundbreaking support services this partnership will bring.
“We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Michigan Technological University to the American Center for Mobility,” said Reuben Sarkar, President & CEO of ACM. “Their exceptional support and engineering expertise will undoubtedly enhance our capabilities and industry knowledge. This partnership reassures ACM as the leader of mobility innovation and leader in the ecosystem.”
Through the multi-year agreement, Michigan Tech will provide an extensive range of engineering services to ACM customers utilizing the university’s expertise and depth of industry knowledge. Michigan Tech’s impact in the mobility sector, which is well known within technical circles, will now be available to an even wider client base through the ACM partnership. ACM’s customers include some of the largest mobility companies, manufacturers, and suppliers in the world.
“The American Center for Mobility and Michigan Tech are recognized leaders in advanced mobility research and technology,” said Rick Koubek, President of Michigan Tech. “Joining forces will not only accelerate our efforts, but also provide opportunities previously unrealized for pushing the boundaries of advanced mobility.”
Michigan Tech’s APS LABS, a multidisciplinary collaborative at Michigan Tech that develops clean, efficient, sustainable mobility and power systems technologies, will lead the university’s partnership with ACM. From propulsion systems research and development to complete vehicle builds, APS LABS blends university resources and expertise with industry familiarity in the mobility, propulsion, and energy sectors.
APS LABS’ energy expertise includes standing up a DOE Solar Regional Test site in 2020, as well as developing Level 4 connected and autonomous vehicles, or L4 CAVs, for research and testing. Recent mobility efforts have focused on several projects sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, working jointly with ACM. These projects include the Energy Efficient Mobility Systems Model Validation project of the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy and the NEXTCAR project of the DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy program. The NEXTCAR project’s goal is to reduce energy consumption by 30% utilizing forward-looking optimization and automated vehicle technologies. ACM, General Motors, and Stellantis are partners on this project.
“This is really exciting news,” said Paul Krutko, president and CEO of Ann Arbor SPARK. “Ann Arbor SPARK is proud of its role in founding and continuing involvement in this important asset in the State of Michigan’s economic development ecosystem.”
“Over the past seven years, ACM and Michigan Tech have collaborated with great success, securing research projects through partnerships with federal agencies,” said APS LABS Director Jeffrey D. Naber. “This collaboration unites our synergistic teams, dedicated to advancing the development of the next generation of mobility technologies.”
Michigan Tech’s presence at ACM’s historic Willow Run site in Ypsilanti will complement and extend the university’s influence in Michigan’s lower peninsula, which includes the Translational Health and Engineering Research Center in Grand Rapids and the Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI) in Ann Arbor. MTRI researchers conduct cutting-edge automotive and transportation research involving infrastructure assessment, safety, mobility, and sensing, often in collaboration with APS LABS and KRC.
