UPM-Biofore-Magazine-1-2014-EN

In good company Among the giants of the automotive industry, the Biofore Concept Car was in good company in Geneva. The latest models from the industry's major players were displayed right next to the exhibition stand of Metropolia, which was responsible for building the car. In addition to the newmate- rials, industry leaders were inter- ested in the car’s design. People from Ferrari's design department visited the Metropolia student’s exhibition area a number of times to take a closer look at the car. Juha Tuomola , a student who was in charge of the car’s interior and exterior design, explains that the aimwas to create an ecological city car with good visibility in traffic. Tuomola is happy with the result and feed- back given to him. His goal is one day to become a designer at an Italian car manufacturing company. "Car designers must be visionaries, as it will take years before the products will be introduced to the markets. This car does not resemble anything on the market, and in that sense the design is very successful." Irish auto journalist Kevin Fenix was also impressed with the car. "First of all, the design of the car is very successful. It looks appealing and attractive, and the glass roof brings in light. The car’s seats are comfortable and its size is perfect for city traffic. "In addition, the wood lining of the car gives a sophisticated look & feel.

The colour is very natural, which is good inmy opinion. The car’s finish is beautiful. Overall, I think that the car is very successful." According to Elisa Nilsson, the coop- eration with the young talents has also been an important experience for UPM. "For the students, this has been an excellent opportunity to demonstrate their skills and cooperate closely with UPM. We, on the other hand, have enjoyed seeing how strongly they have committed to the project." A model of sustainability A perfect example of sustainable development: automotive industry professionals are interested in UPM’s development work. Harald Braun fromMercedes-Benz remarks that building a concept car is a perfect way to take new steps towards sustainable development. "The industry needs research like this in order to demonstrate how sustainability can be incorporated into car design. "What is interesting about this development is to investigate how much of the materials from the first cars that are manufactured using biomaterials can be recycled and used inmanufacturing of subsequent cars. It is impossible to achieve a 100% recy- cling rate, but the challenge is to figure out how close to this target we can get." Braun remarks that sustainable development is becoming an increas-

ingly more important factor affecting consumers' purchase decisions. "After that come ecological and economic factors, whichmust be in balance. Meeting all the requirements of sustainable development in trans- port will be the next big challenge of our time." The adventures of the Biofore Concept Car in Geneva continued after theMotor Show. The car was on display at the UN's Geneva head- quarters for the International Day of Forests, the theme of which was the green economy and the innovative use of forest fibres. Ambassador Päivi Kairamo from the Permanent Mission of Finland in Geneva spoke at the event and stated that the Biofore Concept Car is an excellent example of cooperation between an industry and a university. "It combines an innovative approach with the aim to make it possible to manufacture cars in a more sustain- able and resource-efficient manner in the future," said Kairamo. The Biofore Concept Car will be inspected and registered to be a street legal vehicle in Finland.

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