The transcript of Dialogos Radio’s interview with professor Savas Piperidis of the Technical University of Crete, who is part of the team which has created the Greek-made electric vehicle “Eco Racer” follows below. This interview aired on February 13-14, 2014. Find the podcast of this interview here.
ΜΝ: Joining us today on Dialogos Radio and the Dialogos Interview Series is Savas Piperidis of the Technical University of Crete. Mr. Piperidis, thank you for joining us today, and to begin, share with us a few words about the vehicle known as the Eco Racer, and how the idea for it first developed.
SP: Thank you for the invitation. This vehicle, the Eco Racer, developed out of our love for automobiles. In 2008, two laboratories here at the Technical University of Crete worked together with the goal of developing a single-seat vehicle which would have very low fuel consumption. That’s how the idea began, and since then this concept has developed, and today, after three different models that we developed, we have created our current model, which is an electric vehicle which runs on hydrogen.
MN: Describe for us some of the technical characteristics as well as some of the technological innovations of the Eco Racer.
SP: The biggest innovation is the smart usage of energy in the Eco Racer, which allows the vehicle to consume the smallest possible amount of energy with the best possible performance. In terms of some of the technical characteristics, it is an electric vehicle with a weight of 120 kilograms, it is a single-seater, which has been constructed in its entirety at two laboratories at the Technical University of Crete in Greece, the Intelligent Systems Laboratory and the Mechanical Engineering Laboratory. The vehicle uses hydrogen as its fuel, along with a hydrogen fuel cell which generates electric energy, which is then harnessed by the vehicle in the most efficient way possible, in order for the vehicle to operate with an electric engine, which keeps energy consumption at the lowest possible levels.
MN: If I’m not mistaken, the development and construction of the Eco Racer has taken place exclusively at the Technical University of Crete and exclusively by students and professors at the University…
SP: Yes, that is correct. Our team is comprised of volunteers, students and professors, who work on this project outside of class and outside of their teaching hours and despite their very busy schedules, on holidays and during the evening hours. We do this in order to realize our dreams, and we have accomplished a lot, we’ve won a number of awards, we participate in international competitions with excellent results, but most importantly, we enjoy ourselves and our students receive hands-on education at a very high level, allowing them to attain know-how and experiences at the cutting edge of technology which will help them in their future careers.
MN: Could the Eco Racer be marketed to consumers on the mass market at the present time?
SP: Yes, this could be possible, but it requires a different approach, because up until now we have only created prototypes of the Eco Racer, built by hand and with great effort in our labs. We have not yet performed the requisite studies for the mass production of the vehicle. This is an additional step that would not be too difficult to accomplish, but it would require additional funding, a business plan, and a line of production, in order to produce a vehicle that is designed by Greek minds and built by Greek hands.
MN: It has been heard that one of the primary reasons why your team has not proceeded with the mass production of the Eco Racer is the existing legal and political framework in Greece. Is this the case?
SP: A lot has been heard about this issue, as a result of some statements that we have made in recent years, which have even caught the attention of various government ministries. The situation at the present time is as follows: when we first began our efforts in 2008, we attempted to register our vehicle in order to be able to circulate it on the streets here in Greece. When we attempted this, however, we were told to go to another country, in order to receive the requisite certifications from there that the vehicle is safe, and then to come back to Greece in order to get registered. This of course is not possible for us, and from what I understand, nothing has changed in terms of the legal framework in Greece since that time. This, unfortunately, is a clear indication of the lack of a legal framework which would allow anyone to construct and develop a vehicle in Greece and to circulate it on the road with Greek license plates. It is extremely unfortunate that our vehicle is able to participate in international competitions, on tracks with much higher safety standards than ordinary roads, and yet, we are unable to circulate the vehicle on the road in Greece. Instead, we purchase foreign-made automobiles, we consume fuels and oils imported from overseas, and nobody has shown any interest in permitting the development of a Greek-made automobile which would allow us to have domestic value added to the products that we consume.
MN: From what I understand, you have suggested that the Eco Racer could be used by the public sector in Greece for a variety of different functions.
SP: The easiest way for us to develop the Eco Racer for commercial usage is to promote the usage of the Eco Racer as a commercial vehicle within urban areas and small communities, such as our university campus, for instance. It could, for example, be used by the postal service to deliver mail, it could be used by the police, it could be circulated in downtown areas for small distances on an eight-hour shift and could be recharged at the end of the shift. The vehicle is lightweight, and it does not produce noise or pollutants.
MN: What would need to change in the existing legal, political, and business framework in Greece, in order for the production of the Eco Racer to proceed?
SP: That’s a very good question. Many things would have to change. First of all, our mentality needs to change, as in Greece there is no tradition of auto-making. We’ve all learned to purchase automobiles that have been produced overseas, and though there have been some efforts in the past to develop Greek-made automobiles, no such vehicles were ever produced. That is the basic change that needs to take place. Beyond that, we would need to find an investor that would believe in this idea, but this is difficult, as the business sector in Greece in recent years has faced a tremendous crisis. But that’s a whole other issue. We are an educational institution, and we are doing whatever we possibly can and are exceeding our capabilities. We’ve proven that this idea is viable, we’ve come up with various solutions over the years to challenges that we’ve faced in constructing this vehicle, we are very outgoing and forward-thinking and we are open to any suggestion or collaboration, having already operated under the auspices of our sponsors for the past several years. This is not a fly-by-night operation, but a consistent effort that has been ongoing since 2008, during which time we’ve built automobiles, we’ve participated in international competitions, we’ve been recognized for our achievements, we’ve made technological improvements, and we’ve become known all across Europe.
MN: You’ve mentioned your participation in various competitions. Tell us about some of the awards and recognition that the Eco Racer has earned.
SP: From the beginning, when we first had this idea and when we first began to develop the Eco Racer, it was a basic goal of ours to participate in international competitions, in order to be able to measure our progress in comparison with other efforts worldwide, and also in order to be able to communicate with and share expertise and know-how with people who are involved in the world of automobiles, because, unfortunately, in Greece we do not have this opportunity, there is no one that can share such expertise with us. Automobile production in Greece is unfortunately non-existent. Within this framework, each year since 2008 we’ve participated in a major pan-European competition called the Shell Eco Marathon, where the primary goal is to develop a vehicle with the lowest possible fuel consumption and within some very strict technical parameters. We are currently in fourth place in our category and have been ranked as high as third place, and within this competition, we were also awarded first place, for two consecutive years, in the category of vehicular safety, for the safe design of our vehicle. No other team has accomplished this feat. In addition, last year we were awarded first place both by Shell’s official panel of judges and also by the audience, for a study which we conducted in which participants were asked to portray the world’s energy map 50 years into the future. In total, we’ve won three first-place awards as part of this competition.
MN: In closing, where can our listeners find out more information about the Eco Racer and about your team’s efforts?
SP: Of course. Our website, which is our primary window to the world, contains all the information about our efforts, and the address is www.tucer.tuc.gr. There, anyone can find additional contact information for our team, and we would be happy to speak with anyone who is interested in working with us or in finding out more about our project.
MN: Mr. Piperidis, thank you very much for your time and for this very informative and interesting presentation about the Eco Racer. Best of luck in all of your future efforts.
SP: Thank you very much for having me.
Please excuse any typos or errors which may exist within this transcript.