Thales, Toyota & PhysicsX: Top Manufacturing News This Week
16 June
Renault Group and Thales have created 4 TROOP, a prototype hybrid 4x4 multi-role civil vehicle (VCMR) that can function as a mobile command centre.
It has "substantial data processing capabilities", Renault says, and the ability to operate and coordinate unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs).
This comes as other automotive companies look to be moving further into the defence industry.
15 June
JLR and Japan’s Toyota have warned that “Made in Europe”, and the European Commission's proposed Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), threaten both manufacturing and jobs.
JLR, owned by India’s Tata Motors, said that it could make cars produced in Europe even more expensive than Chinese vehicles.
The IAA could potentially impact billions of euros in annual subsidies and public procurement spending, according to the economic thinktank Bruegel.
16 June
US headquartered GlobalFoundries and Netherlands based Qualinx announced the successful completion of the first fully European-based, end-to-end semiconductor manufacturing flow at GlobalFoundries’ fab in Dresden, Germany.
Dresden is Europe’s largest hub for semiconductor manufacturing; it is known as ‘Silicon Saxony’ and considered Europe's most successful microelectronics cluster.
Multiple semiconductor manufacturing facilities are set to open in Dresden over the next few years, as the EU has funnelled billions into securing a stable supply of European made chips, which it sees as essential to its technological sovereignty.
15 June
PhysicsX, which describes itself as “the physics AI company for industrials”, announced a US$300m Series C financing round, which brought the British startup’s valuation to approximately US$2.4bn.
The company has seen investment from huge companies such as Applied Materials, NVIDIA and Siemens; its Series C round was led by Singaporean state owned investment firm Temasek.
The industrial AI company, founded by two former Formula 1 engineers, says its industrial physics platform is already deployed across aerospace, defence, semiconductors, industrial machinery, automotive, energy and materials sectors.
17 June
Lockheed Martin and General Motors' defence subsidiary, GM Defence, have announced a collaboration to bolster production across the US defence sector.
The companies will work under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to “accelerate the delivery of critical capabilities.”
US President Donald Trump recently invoked the Defence Production Act of 1950 to shore up production.
General Motors has a long history in the defence sector, but this new agreement is a significant expansion to its defence production and builds on multiple automakers currently switching production from cars to defence equipment.
Company portals
Executives
Franck Naro
Vice-président ingénierie du Groupe Renault - Projets Véhicules et Opérations
Frank St. John
Chief Operating Officer
Jacomo Corbo
CEO & Co-Founder
Manfred Horstmann
General Manager & Senior Vice President of GlobalFoundries Europe
Yoshihiro Nakata
CEO, Europe Region, Toyota Motor Corporation
