Completion of West Coast Electric Highway Will Help Spur Industry Growth

From NGT News on February 22, 2016
The California Energy Commission has proposed awarding $8.87 million to four companies to install a network of direct current (DC) fast-charging electric vehicle (EV) stations along major highways in California. ChargePoint, Recargo, EVConnect and NRG EV Services were all awarded grants to install the DC charging stations along Interstate 5, State Route 99 and Highway 101.
The corridor is part of the proposed West Coast Electric Highway that stretches from Baja California to British Columbia, Canada. The charging corridor will include SAE Combo chargers, CHAdeMO chargers and J1772 chargers for increased accessibility across a range of makes and models.
The biggest winner was ChargePoint, which received awards for three segments of the fast-charging corridor totaling $3,659,615, about 42% of the available funding. EV Connect also received three awards totaling $1,843,179. NRG EV Services received two awards valued at $1,659,928, and Recargo received one award worth $1,632,735.
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Act Would Reduce Regulations for Educational and Research Purposes

From Unmanned Aerial Online on March 8, 2016

U.S. Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., and Jerry Moran, R-Kan., have introduced the Higher Education UAS Modernization Act, which would support the operation of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) by higher education institutions for research and educational purposes and workforce development.
The act would allow students and educators at colleges and universities to operate UAS for educational or research purposes and without obtaining specific approval from the Federal Aviation Administration, as long as they meet specified flight and safety requirements.

Colleges Training Tomorrow’s UAS Workforce

“Unmanned aircraft are expected to grow into a multibillion-dollar industry over the next few years, but colleges and universities are training the next generation of unmanned aircraft operators and engineers today,” says Peters.
“I’m proud to introduce this legislation that will help reduce burdensome regulations that stifle innovation and restrict the educational use of drones. By making it easier for students and educators to use unmanned aircraft for research, we will be able to advance new technological applications, develop our workforce and grow our economy,” he continues.
Stephen Hsu, vice president for research and graduate studies at Michigan State University, adds, “MSU welcomes thoughtful congressional attention to the regulatory challenges posed by UAS operations in university research and teaching. An appropriate balance must be struck between regulatory burden relief, aviation safety and the safety and privacy of the general public. The legislation being introduced by Sens. Peters and Moran should initiate important dialogue concerning the responsible conduct of research with these important new tools.”

Read original article here.

City College of San Francisco’s Auto Program is Linking Traditional Auto Instruction with Emerging Internet-Based Auto Businesses

This process started when Nick Rothman was recently appointed a faculty member of the City College of San Francisco (CCSF) Automotive program. Prior to arriving at City College he co-founded Pat’s Garage, an auto repair shop specializing in hybrid and electric vehicle service, and the business Green Gears. He also assisted area businesses in maintaining their Hybrid and EV fleets, including the City Car Share program.

City Car Share Loans Vehicles to CCSF

At CCSF, Rothman teaches Auto 57: Introduction to Hybrid Vehicle Maintenance, which focuses on the principles and functions of Hybrid and Electric vehicles. During Fall 2015 semester, Rothman asked City Car Share if he could use a few of their plug-in vehicles for his class, enabling students to see the inner workings of these vehicles while checking out the technological differences of the models. City Car Share loaned him their Ford C-MAX Energi Plug-in Hybrid and all-electric Nissan Leaf.

Relationship with City Car Share Leads to Jobs for Students

This loaner relationship gave rise to a broader conversation as to how City Car Share maintains its fleet so that cars are client-ready at all times. CCSF provided a couple interns to City Car Share to travel about the City of San Francisco, providing regular inspections of fleet cars. This improved the client-readiness of City Car Share’s fleet, while providing students opportunities to demonstrate workplace skills and responsibilities, easing their search for employment upon completing the program.

Rothman has commented, “Placement is a huge part of the class. We focus on what is out there now and we keep it real world.” Indeed, City Car Share has since hired five of the program’s completers as part of their fleet maintenance team.

Additional Partnerships on the Horizon

Recognizing that City Car Share’s requirements are not unique, Rothman is negotiating with ZipCar and Shift (an emerging internet-based used car search service) to provide students to inspect their vehicles. More broadly, Rothman and his students recognize that a skilled maintenance workforce that can support both new types of businesses as well as new-technology vehicles is a key component of our nation’s future transportation infrastructure.

Luther Jackson, Program Manager of NOVA, a federally funded non-profit that provides workforce development services to Bay Area communities, invited Gerald Bernstein, ATRE Deputy Sector Navigator of the Bay Area Region and Pam Gutman, ATRE Director to tour Prospect Silicon Valley (PSV).

Career Pathways Initiative Connects Talent with Transportation Industry

NOVA and PSV are leading a career pathways initiative to better connect the region’s talent supply pipeline with the transportation industry in the Bay Area. They are focusing their efforts on high schools, colleges, universities, and apprenticeship programs.
While touring PSV, Bernstein and Gutman previewed some of the technologies that are being developed in Silicon Valley for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and other transportation-related connective technologies. PSV demonstrated how cars are communicating with each other on roadways and with local transit signaling systems.
After the tour, Gutman and Jackson exchanged information about the accelerating pace of technological developments in the automotive sector. Jackson was surprised to learn how many automotive manufacturers, suppliers, and high tech companies are working in the Bay Area — on technologies to support autonomous vehicles, connective in-vehicle infotainment systems, and more advanced safety systems.
As he began to understand that Silicon Valley, with its VC investment resources and its penchant for disruption, is also changing the automotive industry’s business models (car-sharing/ride sharing impacting both private and public transit models), Jackson decided to change the name of his program to “Advanced Transportation.”

ATRE and NOVA Educate Faculty, Industry, and Government Officials

Gutman and Jackson have partnered as co-speakers at CTE and Career Pathways events to educate high school and college faculty about the transformation of the automotive industry and the subsequent impact on jobs and work skills. They recently spoke at the CTE Steering Committee Meeting of San Mateo County Office of Education, facilitated by Dr. Vera Jacobson-Lundeberg. Over 50 educators, industry and government officials attended and were informed about the rapidly evolving automotive sector and its impacts on workforce skills and curricula.

As Mary Barra, General Motors Chairman and CEO recently stated: “the automotive industry will change more in the next 5 to 10 years than it has in the last 50.”

Internships for Automotive Program Students in the Works

Bay Area Deputy Sector Navigators (DSNs) communicate regularly on topics of joint interest. In December, Mark Martin, DSN for Manufacturing called Gerald Bernstein, DSN for Advanced Transportation and Renewable Energy (ATRE) to describe manufacturing training he was pursuing at Tesla, and relayed Tesla’s interest in obtaining interns at their service centers.

Tesla Committed to Developing Service Technicians

Bernstein followed up with Tesla’s Vocational and Trade Schools program to discuss their needs. While the company has service centers in over 30 states, there are only one, two, or three centers in most of them. California is home to 18 Tesla service centers, with the majority located in the San Francisco Bay and Los Angeles-Orange County regions. Bernstein learned that while additional California service centers are in development, the company has had difficulty finding appropriately skilled technicians. This has fueled Tesla’s commitment to develop their own.

Bay Area Student Internship Program in Development

A factory tour was arranged for chairs of the 14 Bay Area Automotive programs to discuss Tesla’s needs and the types of hybrid and electric vehicle (EV) skills already being taught. The group determined that a program for student internships at Tesla’s maintenance facilities would be beneficial to the company and the college programs.
Details are being worked out between Bernstein and Tesla’s managers. Current thinking is that individual colleges will provide candidates to their nearest service center from which Tesla will pick one or two each semester, depending on demand. Tesla anticipates replicating this same review and discussion with college automotive programs in the LA-Orange County regions.

Transportation YOU Mentoring Program Introduces Girls to “Cool” Transportation Jobs

WTS International, an organization dedicated to the advancement of women in the transportation industry, is expanding its reach to young girls across the country.
Through its Transportation YOU program, WTS chapters introduce young women ages 13-18 to STEM studies and a wide variety of careers in transportation.
This hands-on, interactive mentoring program offers activities designed to spark interest in all modes of transportation. Girls are encouraged to take courses in math, science and technology which can lead them to careers that can positively impact the transportation industry. WTS chapters span the state from Sacramento to San Diego, with contact information for each location available on the website. Read More →

Pushing the Boundaries of Autonomous Flight

Drones Featured in Interactive TED Talk

Raffaello D’Andrea develops flying machines, and his latest projects are pushing the boundaries of autonomous flight — from a flying wing that can hover and recover from disturbance to an eight-propeller craft that’s ambivalent to orientation — to a swarm of tiny coordinated micro-quadcopters.
Prepare to be dazzled by a dreamy, swirling array of flying machines as they dance like fireflies above the TED stage.

Clean Energy Jobs Created Would More Than Offset Loss of Fossil Fuel Jobs by 2050

By Naveena Sadasivam for InsideClimate News
A new report finds that switching heavily to wind, solar and other sources for generating electricity could create an additional 1 million jobs by 2030 and 2 million by 2050.
The report, by the Virginia-based consulting firm ICF International, found that a large-scale shift to renewable sources for generating electricity could increase U.S. employment by 1 million jobs by 2030 and 2 million by 2050, even after accounting for job losses related to fossil fuels. The transition would also provide between $300 and $650 in additional disposable income per household annually in 2050, the report found.
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Transit Agency Takes Major Step Toward Becoming Nation’s First 100 Percent Electric Public Transit Fleet

From NGT News on February 11, 2016
During a special meeting, the Antelope Valley Transit Authority (AVTA) board of directors voted to award electric vehicle maker BYD a contract to manufacture up to 85 electric buses over a five-year period. Los Angeles-based BYD Motors will build the 85 buses for AVTA at its manufacturing facility in Lancaster, California.
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McLaughlin returns to the Inland Empire/Desert Region as Deputy Sector Navigator

After a six-month stint as Deputy Sector Navigator (DSN) for Advanced Manufacturing at College of the Canyons, Larry McLaughlin returned this fall to his role serving the Inland Empire/Desert region as DSN for Advanced Transportation and Renewable Energy (ATRE). This DSN position is based at College of the Desert (COD) where McLaughlin has served for almost seven years – first as a Director of the Advanced Transportation Technology & Energy Center at COD, then as DSN under the Doing What Matters initiative. Read More →