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Old Posted Jul 2, 2010, 5:32 AM
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Germany deal a Canadian first

International composites research centre

The University of Western Ontario has clinched a deal with a German institute that is forecast to put London in the driver’s seat as Southwestern Ontario’s manufacturing capital.

“This is a big winner for London,” said Ted Hewitt, vice-president of research and international relations at Western.

“I see job growth, I see investment.”

UWO and the Fraunhofer Institute of Chemical Technology have signed a deal to create the International Composites Research Centre where automotive, air and space companies can develop new lightweight materials.

Fraunhofer technology is already being adopted by European carmakers, Hewitt said.

North American companies that want to make use of Fraunhofer’s advanced system now have to ship their parts to Europe. The new centre will allow them to do it in London.

“This technology for lightweight composites does not exist here, and every manufacturer in Canada and the U.S. is looking to go there because in Europe they are already halfway down the road.

“You are going to see metal in cars slowly disappearing over the next five to 10 years because you need to meet the emission standards, you need to meet the fuel economy standards. You can’t do that unless you come up with newer lightweight materials that are very strong,” Hewitt said.

Construction of the $15-million centre at the new Advanced Manufacturing Park in London is expected to start this fall.

The park on Bradley Ave. just east of Veterans Memorial Parkway is a joint venture between Western, Fanshawe College and the City of London.

Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is the largest applied research organization in Europe, where it has more than 80 research units. With an annual research budget of more than $2 billion, the institute also has research centres and offices in the United States, Asia and the Middle East.

The institute in London will be the first for Fraunhofer in Canada, Hewitt said.
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