John Krzesicki speaks with Will Jones, the project manager for the University of Michigan’s Solar Car Team.
Transcript
Hello! My name is John Krzesicki. It’s my pleasure to host the Power Systems living on the edge series. The show is where we have conversations with industry experts on their insights into mobility’s future and impact on cities and industry. As a business development manager with PSR, I can talk with our clients about how they prepare for the future. Our clients and their suppliers are going through a significant paradigm shift as they move from an entirely Internal combustion engine to alternative power. As we all know, today’s designs incorporate technology and software to be more innovative, competitive, and efficient. Our clients are looking for cutting-edge alternative power to power their equipment. Today’s topic is Solar Cars.
Today’s guest speaker is Will Jones. Will is the project manager for the University of Michigan Solar Car Team. I met Will at the International Auto Show in Detroit last month and felt this would be a great opportunity to share an insight into the program. Welcome, Will!
William Jones
Doing well; how are you very excited to be here.
John Krzesicki
Can you provide an overview of the program?
William Jones
The program was founded in 1989. So there’s been 33 years of solar racing.
We’ve collectively built a total of 17 cars. We have nine national championships in seven world podium finishes over 33 years.
We want to raise $2.5 million to design, build and race these solar-powered vehicles.
John Krzesicki
You cannot be doing this yourself. How large is your team, and what is the mix of your support?
William Jones
The team is composed of about 100 multidisciplinary students. And we’re a team of entrepreneurs, engineers, leaders, and the future.
John Krzesicki
Can you give me a team breakdown?
William Jones
So the team is about 100 people of that, about 70 engineers, and then the remaining 30 are a combination of business people, logistics, and communications.
John Krzesicki
This sounds like an exciting program. Tell me a little about yourself, your background, and why you got involved in the program.
William Jones
I’m a fourth-year engineering mechanical engineering student.
At the University of Michigan, I’m from Okemos, MI. I raced solar cars in high school.
The newest car we’re working on now will be the 4th solar car built. I’m super passionate about engineering sustainability, and I also like to race.
We have a great team that helps us build the best product possible.
John Krzesicki
So is it 100% run by the students?
William Jones
Yeah, that’s correct. Entirely run by students. We have a faculty advisor, but he’s just there to ensure no one gets hurt and doesn’t make any decisions, from designing the car to planning logistics. It’s all students.
John Krzesicki
So if I’m a supplier and want to help be a part of the program, what are some of the benefits of being a supplier or sponsor to U of MI’s solar car team?
William Jones
Yeah, absolutely. I guess, first of all, you know we are the best and brightest engineers at the University of Michigan, and based on how we’ve performed in the past, where some of the best and brightest engineers in the world.
Recruiting is always a benefit. Having that inside access to the team. But you know, beyond that, we’re pushing the boundaries of electric vehicles. You know we have nine national championships, more than any other. We’re cutting-edge technology, and we’re a winning team.
Solar car team in the United States. We have seven world podium finishes.
When our car competes, thousands of people see it in person. Millions of people see it online. It’s a cool thing to be a part of. And not only that, of course, but the marketing is tax deductible through the university, which is always a benefit.
The World Solar Challenge draws media attention from around the globe, including past coverage from the New York Times, Discovery Channel, USA Today, Huffington Post, Reuters, Wired, Los Angeles Times, and many more
.John Krzesicki
Is there a big event racing event coming up? Can you tell me a little bit about that?
William Jones
Yeah, absolutely. So we compete annually in the World Solar Challenge, an international competition in Australia.
The best teams from around the world come to Australia and race 3000 kilometers across the Australian Outback, from Darwin to Adelaide, Northern Australia to Southern Australia.
So right now, we are deep in designing our newest vehicle and working on the fundraising and planning logistics. So come October 2023, we have one of the best solar cars and teams in the world, and we’re in Australia, ready to compete for the World Championship.
And then, I guess the car will be sent in early August. The team will arrive in Australia in early September. Then it’s more testing in Australia, getting used to the Australian climate, ensuring the car arrives safely, and practicing operations. You know when the team is racing and when it needs to be a well-organized machine.
John Krzesicki
Is there also a race across America? From New York to Los Angeles? Can you talk a little bit about the across America?
William Jones
So there is the American solar challenge, an event we have competed in for years or even years. So in the summer of 2024.
Michigan has participated every year since 1990, notching six top-3 finishes. In 2017, we finished 2nd, our best finish in team history, and in 2019, we finished 3rd. Last summer, we drove our 16th solar car 3000 miles from New York City to Los Angeles, accomplishing a never-before-done feat. We are using these experiences to fuel the design of a 2023 car that will compete again among the best in the world at WSC.
John Krzesicki
Tell me more about the challenges of being a part World Championship event. For example, the number of days, the type of terrain, the climate, etc.
William Jones
As they travel 3000 km through the Outback, teams encounter scorching temperatures, high winds, and Australian wildlife.
John Krzesicki
Can you tell me more about the vehicle and some of your team’s design challenges?
William Jones
Yeah, absolutely. So solar cars at the end of the day, but the game is pretty simple. We’re trying to optimize energy by collecting the most solar power possible. We’re trying to optimize energy and consume the least energy possible at a given speed.
So what that comes down to in terms of day-to-day challenges, of course, you know, first and foremost, we design a safe and reliable vehicle that isn’t safe or reliable. You know, we’re not going to be able to compete. But then beyond that, it’s pushing the limits of technology, trying to have the lightest vehicle with the best tires, lowest rolling resistance, and the best electronic systems, most efficient electronic systems were limited in terms of solar array area to 4 meters squared.
And we have to use silicon solar cells.
There’s a lot that goes into that, not only just sourcing and finding the best cells but also encapsulating them and putting them together to power our vehicle. And you know, every electronic.
Every element down the line, we’re trying to find or build. You know, the lightest and most efficient.
And it goes the same on the mechanical side of things, and our entire body is a carbon fiber tub. Most of our suspension combines carbon fiber and aluminum, always looking at pushing the boundaries and how we can make it lighter, stiffer, and easier to manufacture.
John Krzesicki
Boy, those are some of the conversations I have with my clients. The challenge of design and lighter materials and being efficient and looking for alternative power to power their equipment or technologies is a key part of that. So yeah, definitely familiar with some of your team’s challenges.
How can we signup as a sponsor?
William Jones
Yeah, yeah. Very open. And you know, lots of sponsors. We love the cash donations. But sometimes, the in-kind donations, whether carbon fiber time and a wind tunnel and sensors to test on the vehicle, work out great for us because those things help us become faster. And for sponsors, it can be a lot easier to donate products.
You know, just pure cash, and it’s a two-way relationship, and you know, ideally, we want to benefit from our sponsor and how our sponsor benefits from us. And we’re very flexible, and whatever you know makes sense for us and, what makes sense for the sponsor, how we can benefit from this relationship.
John Krzesicki
Once you are a sponsor, what is the communication process with your members?
William Jones
Sure. Of course, we have general monthly updates that we send out not only to our sponsors but also to our alums. So that’s something that depends on the relationship with the sponsor.
Outside of cash, you know, especially for in-kind will, certain relationships will be important during certain times of the year.
For example, sponsoring might be building the tooling for our carbon fiber composite parts. They might be meeting with them weekly or potentially even daily. And meeting once every two months at the start of the year, and talking about the plan and where we’re at. But then, as we get closer. Up until that day, trying to make sure everything on our side and their side is.
During the competition, there’ll be testing as we get closer and have a vehicle running on the road, and there’ll be frequent communication sharing of, you know, photos media.
Activating those relationships on both sides, and that, of course, when a lot of the value happens is when the car is on the road in front of eyes, especially during competition. You know, there are a lot of eyes on us.
John Krzesicki
Before the event, you’re doing a lot of showing off the vehicle and stuff like that. Is that a media video? Is that something the sponsor would have access to at least use internally within their company to show how they’re supporting U of MI? Is that also part of the sponsorship?
William Jones
Yes, for example, we work with Roush, and they help us with many of our composites. You know it is a great time to work with Roush and do our carbon fiber layups. We’re taking a lot of photos. We’ll take many photos and emphasize the benefit their relationship is giving both.
John Krzesicki
So I’m asking you a question here about who’s your, who’s your competition? Who’s what’s school? What program is out there that is your biggest competitor? Do you have one?
William Jones
Yeah, absolutely. So definitely the, I guess, Red Sox or whatever you want to say, arguably the best team in the world is Delft University from the Netherlands.
They started racing in 2001, and they won.
The University of Michigan is recognized worldwide among the solar community as one of the top teams yearly. When people think of American teams, it’s generally beat Michigan.
John Krzesicki
What is your target for collecting, you know, fundraising? Do you guys have a target you like to hit in terms of money?
William Jones
So this year, the goal is $750,000 in cash.
And then there’s an additional 1.5 million in-kind donations, whether carbon fiber machining, raw materials, or transportation to and from Australia.
And that number is up a little from past World Solar Challenge races, partly due to the supply chain inflation. Everything was a little bit more expensive. I think everyone’s saying that right now, but also because we’ve recognized there are some things that you know to be the best in the world and achieve that number one spot, we need to make some investments.
Spend a little bit more money in certain areas. Some of those this year is big. We’re trying to focus on whether we struggle with designing what we generally believe could have been the best car in the world, but the manufacturing, we have challenges, make mistakes, and ends up slowing the car down.
In 2019, we spent about 1/4 of $1,000,000 on the regulations that have changed, and we’re no longer able to use the gallium arsenide space-grade cells we used in the past. But now there’s a lot bigger focus on battery technology, and that’s seen many maturities come to the batteries in the past. And the technology too, and some areas have become less expensive, for example, solar cells.
Four or five years here, where?
There are quite a few startups in the field and research labs pushing energy density limits.
John Krzesicki
Where are you on target for fundraising?
William Jones
Sure. So right now, in terms of what we have in the bank.
We’re pretty shy in terms of what we have committed.
About $350,000 in cash short of that.
John Krzesicki
Right.
William Jones
$750,000 goal.
In-kind can be a little bit harder to quantify, but we are certainly still looking for partners and just about every manufacturing aspect.
John Krzesicki
That’s good to know.
Will, you are part of an exciting program at U of MI. You have certainly shared a lot of information. To donate to the program, please check out the um solar website for additional information on how to be a part of this program.
I want to take this opportunity to thank you for your time, and I look forward to learning more about the U of MI solar car team and the progress as you get closer to the Solar World Championship finish line.
