Greg Layson, Automotive News Canada
January 11, 2021
The Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association (APMA) has issued its request for proposal to suppliers who want to be part of Project Arrow, an all-Canadian, zero-emissions vehicle it calls a “generational effort.”
Artificial intelligence will help with organizing the RFPs, cutting down on the number of hours normally spent on sorting through potential vendors.
The concept vehicle is being designed, engineered and built by Canada’s post-secondary institutions and automotive supply sector.
APMA President Flavio Volpe says more than 130 Canadian companies have already expressed interest in the project but expects 200 to bid to work on the vehicle. The RFP deadline is March 1, 2021.
The AI will identify which suppliers have submitted similar proposals or build similar items. It will note which proposals work best with each other. And, it will identify which parts or systems are missing in the batch of proposals.
“We’ll know way before March 1 where the gaps are and we’ll pursue filling them,” Volpe said. “The system will spit out a series of optimize versions of the architecture of the vehicle.”
The AI will save time by reading through RFPs and identifying which parts and systems are missing.
The APMA also unveiled new renderings of the sleek utility vehicle Monday.
“I love the vehicle. More and more, you’ll see an original design emerge. It’s really coming together,” Volpe said.
The entire project, which launched at CES 2020, remains on schedule, Volpe said.
A virtual unveiling is slated for some time later in 2021 and the car is scheduled to be released and on tour by the end of 2022.
“We’re on track for the end of 2022,” Volpe said. “I don’t want to be naive about it, but sometimes these things bleed into the next quarter or the next year.
“But I’m not an OEM needing to meet specific deadlines. We’re all working on this together. We’re confident that COVID has not slowed us down, yet. But we’re still on track.”
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