Big 3, Military Swap Secrets at Expo
The Big Three auto makers and the nation’s defense laboratories began an unprecedented two-day exposition here Wednesday to share research secrets that might be transferred from military applications to car building.
The gathering at the University of Michigan is the first joint attempt by General Motors, Ford and Chrysler to tap into the vast technological knowledge gathered by the military during the Cold War.
It is just the kind of effort that President Clinton praised two days ago in laying out a new strategic industrial policy that encourages government and industry partnerships--particularly in the area of technological innovation.
While the Big Three separately have shared research data with some of the nation’s 700 federally funded labs in recent years, this is the first time they have joined up with labs controlled by the Department of Defense.
Several hundred Big Three scientists and engineers are expected to attend the exposition to learn about military breakthroughs in such fields as composite materials, suspension systems, advanced robotics and batteries.
“Together we can win the economic war,” said Kenneth J. Oscar, director of the Army’s Tank-Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center, which organized the expo. It was supported by the U.S. Council for Automotive Research, a group that oversees cooperative research by Detroit’s car makers.
The event, held in the university field house, includes more than 30 exhibits and 70 technical presentations from research scientists at about a dozen Army, Navy and Air Force labs.
Many of the subjects are of interest to the auto makers as they develop low-emission and electric-powered vehicles to meet California’s strict environmental regulations by 1998.
In the keynote address, Francois J. Castaing, vice president of vehicle engineering for Chrysler, said the American auto industry is facing intense global competition from countries whose governments and industries work much closer together in developing commercial technologies.
The United States spends 66% of its federal research and development dollars on defense, compared to 19% for Germany and 9% for Japan, noted Castaing, who is on loan to USCAR. Even worse, he said, the United States spends 0.2% of its federal R&D; dollars on industrial development, compared to 20% by Germany and 8% by Japan.
“No American company, no American industry, can be expected to compete against the combined resources of entire countries and continents in the long term,” Castaing said.
Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) said the needs of the military and the auto makers are often similar. For instance, each needs to make vehicles that are lighter yet retain their strength.
“Both defense labs and the auto company labs are doing research on new materials and coatings,” he said. “Why not share that knowledge?”
At a news conference after his address, Levin said the Big Three should form a consortium to build electric cars together. Such a move would face antitrust obstacles, but Levin said the Clinton Administration has indicated a willingness to push for a change in the antitrust law that would allow for it.
