Academia and Industry Collaboration: Politecnico di Milano and NHOA Group New JRC

NHOA Group (NHOA.PA, formerly Engie EPS) and Politecnico di Milano signed an agreement for the establishment of a Joint Research Centre (JRC) with the aim of developing innovation, research, and training initiatives in the Energy sector to enable the global transition towards clean energy and sustainable mobility.

The scientific collaboration agreement consolidates the long-standing partnership between NHOA Group and Politecnico di Milano and stems from the mutual desire to develop joint training, research, and innovation initiatives. The main objective is to address cutting-edge research topics in energy storage, e-mobility, and distributed energy resources. The collaboration covers the following areas:

• Power Conversion Systems’ innovative control and design to sustain weaker electrical grids
• New battery technologies’ development focusing on EV second-life batteries
• Cutting-edge EV charging solutions coupled with storage of renewable energy
• Energy management systems and cloud computing unlocking distributed energy resources

“Sustainability, global transition, clean energy, and sustainable mobility are not slogans. They are actual commitments and leading priorities in research, economic and political agendas. An obligation to Politecnico di Milano, the first technical university in Italy and one of the top institutions in Europe. Technology, innovation, and knowledge sharing can make a difference. In this respect, academia has a significant role to play starting from experimental labs to trending studies to the nurturing of talents and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) disciplines. A challenge Politecnico is happy to share with companies in a common endeavour. The collaboration with NHOA Group gives birth to a Joint Research Centre that not only stems from solid ground, but also reflects a long-lasting vision and a mutual approach that is paradigmatic in addressing complex and highly demanding global scenarios,” commented Ferruccio Resta, Rector of Politecnico di Milano.

“The synergy between business and academic world is at the core of NHOA Group R&D, a department in which innovation and competitiveness take the lead. NHOA itself was born as a spinoff of Politecnico di Milano and has always considered it a polestar in the development of technologies enabling the global transition towards clean energy and sustainable mobility,” stated Carlalberto Guglielminotti, CEO of NHOA Group. “With this strategic partnership, Politecnico di Milano and NHOA consolidate their common objectives: to develop advanced and complex research with a high experimental and innovative content, to share instruments, laboratories, and research infrastructures to encourage cooperation between the academic world and businesses. Tech companies must always remember that finding young talents and helping them achieve their best results is what will make the world move forward through never-ending innovation, and this is why we so strongly believe in our Partnership with Politecnico di Milano”.

Among the many initiatives, NHOA Energy, Atlante and Free2move eSolutions – the three Global Business Lines of NHOA Group – invest in the growth of next generations, supporting PhDs and young researchers. NHOA Energy also contributes to the Polytechnic Equal Opportunities (POP – Pari Opportunità Politecniche) program with the Girls@Polimi initiative, which provides for the donation of a full-cycle scholarship to encourage final year high school students to enrol in STEM disciplines.

“Since 2007 the collaboration with Politecnico di Milano has been pivotal in the affirmation of NHOA Group as a global player in Energy Storage, e-Mobility and EV Fast charging Infrastructure. Over the years we have carried out many successful projects together: in collaboration with the Department of Energy, we have built in 2017 “PROPHET” NHOA’s proprietary Energy Management System, while with the Departments of Mechanics and Electronics we have recently focused on the development of an innovative converters and advanced digital control platforms. As historical collaborator of Politecnico di Milano, my greatest pride is seeing so many passionate, extraordinary PhD students join NHOA Group and take active part in shaping a more sustainable future for the generations to come,” noted Daniele Rosati, CTO of NHOA Energy and JRC Coordinator for NHOA Group.

 

NHOA Group JRC activities

NHOA Group JRC activities will include 8 new PhD scholarships to support the different research initiatives and in 2023 the creation of a JRC lab in which students, researchers, and professors from Politecnico di Milano and NHOA Group R&D engineers will work together to develop new products for NHOA Energy, Atlante and Free2move eSolutions.