Partners – V-CAL

North East Automotive Alliance

The North East Automotive Alliance is an industry-led cluster group, established to support the economic sustainable growth and competitiveness of the sector in the North East of England. Launched in March 2015, now with over 300 cluster participants, the NEAA is the largest automotive cluster in the UK and one of the fastest-growing clusters across Europe. Our aim is simple – to build upon the region’s significant automotive capability and to firmly establish the North East as a true global automotive powerhouse – ensuring North East is at the forefront of the Governments strategy to ensure the technologies of tomorrow are designed, developed and manufactured in the UK. The NEAA focuses on: Networking & Connectivity, Business Resilience, Skills & Training, Innovation & Technology, Collaboration, Promotion, Industry Voice.

VANTEC Eruope

Vantec Europe Limited started providing Logistics and Warehousing services to its main automotive client in Washington, Sunderland in 1990 as part of a joint venture activity. Since then, Vantec Europe Ltd has grown organically and developed its range of services to become a preferred 3PL (third party logistics) provider, with 12 operations in the UK and a key customer base including in the automotive and premium vehicles; construction equipment; lighting; electric battery and offshore renewable energy industries. Vantec is linked to Nissan through a private road on the southeast of Nissan providing circa 200 deliveries a day. If proved financially viable this project has the potential to allow Vantec to increase deliveries into the automotive client by circa 18  deliveries daily from Vantec to Nissan utilising zero-emission autonomous yard trucks. 

Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK

Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK is located in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, in North East England. It was built on the site of the former RAF Unsworth airfield near the A19 and A1231. Nissan will provide access to the private on-site test track to prove out the vehicles before road trials. The factory is connected to both the UK Nissan Distribution Centre (NDS) and Vantec via a private road system that the project will utilise throughout the project lifecycle for all road trials.  

StreetDrone

StreetDrone’s mission is to create the world’s most sustainable, efficient and safest logistics solution. The company is a leading developer of autonomous technologies designed to progressively automate first-mile logistics, with zero emissions, zero delays and zero incidents. As a leading technology developer, StreetDrone’s strengths lie across the full stack, from low-level embedded control systems and hardware design to autonomous software and teleoperation systems.

Nokia

At Nokia, we create technology that helps the world act together. As a trusted partner for critical networks, we are committed to innovation and technology leadership across mobile, fixed and cloud networks. We create value with intellectual property and long-term research, led by the award-winning Nokia Bell Labs. Adhering to high standards of integrity and security, we help build the capabilities needed for a more productive, sustainable and inclusive world.

Newcastle University's Future Mobility Group

Newcastle University is a leading centre of transport technology in Europe, with a significant research role in the development of: Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAV); air quality and decarbonisation; alternative fuels; connected infrastructure for smart cities, and; smart transport for ageing and mobility. In the field of connected and autonomous vehicle research, FMG is performing: Quantitative investigations of end users’ interaction with highly automated vehicles during automated driving, and human drivers’ and remote operators’ takeover control; Qualitative investigations (through in-depth interviews and focus groups) of end users’ requirements about the human-machine interactions of automated vehicles; Designing user-friendly human-machine interactions and human-machine interfaces based on end users’ requirements; Evaluation (both quantitative and qualitative) of user-friendly design of automated vehicles on end-users’ performance, attitude and perception.

ANGOKA

ANGOKA’s proposition has been developed to address the imminent step change in security with the maturing of technologies such as quantum computing.  The ANGOKA solution has been demonstrated successfully in drones, where not only encryption and authentication are provided but also communication of mission critical data.  In road transport, the ANGOKA solutions ensure devices can trust each other and communicate securely across untrusted networks – applications include in-vehicle communications, teleoperations, and health and usage monitoring (asset condition monitoring and management). 

BP International Limited

Bp International Limited is an Integrated Energy Company whose ambition is to be net zero by 2050 or sooner and to help the world get to net zero. They have a number of aims to support this ambition including more $ for new energies‎, clean cities and corporates, and more clean energy. The Digital Science team will represent bp’s involvement in the project. Their remit is to consider the effects of frontier technology on bp’s current and future business.  

Womble Bond Dickinson

Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP (WBD) is a Top 20 UK law firm with strong roots in the North East and offices in seven cities in the UK and 22 cities in the US.  WBD’s lawyers advise clients in relation to complex and critical issues across multiple, sophisticated sectors such as manufacturing, technology, transport and energy.  WBD’s genuine sector knowledge and experience mean that it is well placed to provide support in relation to the wide variety of legal issues that will be generated by a project of this type.   