Tata Steel Sets Up Centre For Innovation In Mobility At IIT Madras Research Park

~ Centre to work closely with academic institutions and automotive industry ~

~ Will provide advanced technical support and focus on developing application technologies for current and future mobility industries such as Automotive, Railways and Hyperloop ~

To play a key role in India’s mobility sector, Tata Steel has setup a Centre for Innovation in Mobility (CIM) in Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras Research Park. The new center will closely work with academic institutes and mobility industry. The Centre will develop application technologies for current and future mobility platforms such as automotive, railways and hyperloop. This new R&D Centre has facilities for Computer Aided Design and Engineering (CAD/CAE), Experimental Roll Forming, Dynamic Dent test system, AR/VR experience centre and full-scale facilities for vehicle benchmarking. This facility is in addition to the already available state-of-art application research centre at Jamshedpur. It will help the mobility industry with design and engineering, material selection, prototyping and testing.

T. V. Narendran, CEO & MD, Tata Steel, said: “Sustainable, safe, and affordable mobility solutions of the future will emerge from the cooperation of relevant industries, academia, and material suppliers who understand the challenges well. We believe that it is essential to focus on creating a culture that encourages agility and innovation. With an unparalleled focus on innovation and cutting-edge technologies, Tata Steel is committed to providing excellence at all touchpoints to our customers and will always be at the forefront of developing pioneering technologies. Our new center at IIT Madras is yet another way of reaffirming our commitment to creating innovative solutions for the mobility of the future.”

Dr Debashish Bhattacharjee, Vice President, Technology and New Material Business, Tata Steel, said: “The Centre for Innovation in Mobility is the first of Tata Steel’s multiple planned satellite R&D and Technology development centres in focussed, future-relevant areas. These satellite centres will be co-located with academia and/or customer. The CIM at the Research Park of IIT Madras will focus on developing multi-material design and manufacturing solutions for mobility including emerging technologies such as Hyperloop and Air Taxis.”   

Professor Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Institute Professor, IIT Madras, India & President, IITM Research Park, IITM Incubation Cell and RTBI, said: “India has the potential to become a powerhouse of innovation in mobility. This will substantially influence our economic growth as well. Over the years, IITMRP has developed a very strong R&D ecosystem, where leading industry and startups in the mobility sector have developed cutting edge technologies, with a focus on green mobility solutions. Tata Steel is also an innovation driven industry leader. With the launch of this new centre for innovation, we look forward to jointly leveraging our strengths in commercialising more homegrown technologies that significantly reimagine mobility on a global scale.”

Recently, Tata Steel and TuTr Hyperloop signed a Memorandum of Agreement at IIT Madras, to jointly work on development and deployment of Hyperloop technology at scale. Inter alia, the key challenges of design and materials selection will be addressed through this Centre for Innovation in Mobility. Over the last 20 years, Tata Steel has been the preferred supplier for all major automotive manufacturers and ancillaries in India and aspires to maintain this leadership position in the automotive segment.

About Tata Steel

Tata Steel group is among the top global steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of 34 million tonnes per annum. It is one of the world's most geographically diversified steel producers, with operations and commercial presence across the world. The group recorded a consolidated turnover of US $ 32.83 billion in the financial year ending March 31, 2022.

A Great Place to Work-CertifiedTM organisation, Tata Steel Limited, together with its subsidiaries, associates, and joint ventures, is spread across five continents with an employee base of over 65,000. Tata Steel has been a part of the DJSI Emerging Markets Index since 2012 and has been consistently ranked amongst top 10 steel companies in the DJSI Corporate Sustainability Assessment since 2016. Besides being a member of ResponsibleSteelTM, worldsteel’s Climate Action Programme and World Economic Forum’s Global Parity Alliance, Tata Steel has won several awards and recognitions including the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse recognition for its Jamshedpur, Kalinganagar and IJmuiden Plants, and Prime Minister’s Trophy for the best performing integrated steel plant for 2016-17. The Company, ranked as India’s most valuable Metals & Mining brand by Brand Finance, featured amongst CII Top 25 innovative Indian Companies in 2021 and top 10 sustainable organisations of India Hurun Research Institute in the 2021 Capri Global Capital Hurun India Impact 50, received Steel Sustainability Champion recognition from worldsteel for five years in a row, ‘Most Ethical Company’ award 2021 from Ethisphere Institute, RIMS India ERM Award of Distinction 2021, Masters of Risk - Metals & Mining Sector recognition at The India Risk Management Awards for the sixth consecutive year, and Award for Excellence in Financial Reporting FY20 from ICAI, among several others.

To know more, visit www.tatasteel.com and www.wealsomaketomorrow.com.