Chrysler 2001 Annual Report Download - page 24
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The ability to innovate enables Fiat to increase the competitive
advantage of its Sectors because it helps them create value,
by cutting the time and cost required to develop and manufacture
their products, and enhancing their performance. Innovation is
the logical result of research. Consequently, the work carried
out by the Fiat Research Center (FRC) and Elasis occupies an
important place in the Group’s strategies and development plans.
Consistent with its mission “to increase the Sectors’
competitiveness with innovation at competitive prices,” the
FRC uses leading-edge technologies and methods to conduct
research capable of having a major impact on the Sectors’
products and processes. The Center’s activity focuses on
projects that can support and stimulate the Sectors’ own
research and internal development.
Elasis has become a reference point for researchers throughout
Southern Italy. The main thrust of its research and development
programs is on new automotive products, and its goal is to
speed the transfer of its innovations to the Group’s Sectors
and help them develop effective responses to changing
environmental and social issues.
Overall, more than 13,800 people at 131 centers in Italy and
abroad worked on the Group’s research and development
projects in 2001. Total expenditures came to 1,817 million
euros, equivalent to 3.5% of manufacturing revenues.
Fiat Research Center
With its wealth of sophisticated equipment, its staff of
about 950 employees and an external network of over 200
universities and Italian and international research institutions,
the FRC is the largest private-sector research organization
in Italy. In 2001, the FRC transferred 120 new products and
processes and 140 new methodologies to Group Sectors.
In addition, it enlarged its consulting activities, transferring
technology to Group suppliers and other small and medium-
size businesses. As a result, its presence in the consulting
field grew considerably compared to the previous year.
In its continuing pursuit of a strategy of internationalization,
the FRC has participated in a significant number of programs
sponsored by the European Union in recent years. In 2001,
the FRC was awarded 49 new projects that, when added to
those already in progress, make it the leading developer of
research initiatives under the Fifth Research Framework
Program both in terms of the quality and the number of
projects approved, which now total 166.
In Italy, the FRC submitted new financing applications
for 29 projects in 2001. These projects have a total cost
of more than 85 million euros over the next three years.
It also filed 91 new patent applications in Italy.
The major achievements of 2001 are reviewed below:
❚“Minimum Hybrid” Methane-Powered Multipla
This car uses two of the most promising technologies
to reduce fuel consumption and harmful emissions.
A methane-powered, multiple-point, fuel-injected engine
runs in conjunction with an electric power generator and
a robotized gearbox.
The system, built with the support of the Ministry of the
Environment, delivers exceptional fuel savings and reduces
emissions to levels that are ten years ahead of the current
standards.
❚Fuel Cell Vehicles
The hybrid fuel-cell bus, built with the sponsorship of the
Ministry of the Environment, was developed jointly by Irisbus,
the Turin Transit Authority (or ATM, its Italian acronym), and
the City of Turin. The FRC built the onboard energy control
and management system as well as the onboard information
system. A prototype of the fuel cell-powered Seicento
Elettra, the first Italian car to run on hydrogen, received the
2001 “environmentally friendly innovation” award from Lega
Ambiente, an Italian environmental group.
❚Intellibus
This is a modern online information system that manages
fleets of vehicles. It collects and manages data remotely by
Fiat and TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION
Fiat Research Center in Orbassano.