Ford opens £24 million electric vehicle test lab in UK

Ford on Wednesday opened its new Propulsion Development Laboratory at its UK HQ in Essex, for research and development for Ford’s European electric vehicle supplies.

This new facility is built with a £24 million investment and inaugurated by UK’s transport minister Antony Brone MP as part of a site-wide tour and hands-free, feet-free drive of the Ford Mustang Mach-E with BlueCruise.

The facility will house new EV powertrain components for testing with speeds and loads to accelerate levels of wear.

Advanced Propulsion Laboratory (APL) specializes in minimizing noise and vibration from EV powertrains as well as developing hybrid powertrains for the latest mission regulations.

E-PRiME develops advanced manufacturing processes to produce EV component prototypes ahead of volume production.

The newest Propulsion Development Laboratory comprises eight vehicle-size rooms capable of testing electric power units and propulsion systems – maximizing development time, including round-the-clock component reliability sign-off.

The new laboratory’s test rooms are configured to test EV, hybrid, and combustion powertrains, flexing between technologies in anticipation of market changes and customer requirements.

“I’m delighted that the transport minister Anthony Browne joined us today to officially open our new Propulsion Development Laboratory. This is the third new test facility opened on our Dunton Campus in two years, underpinning the site’s key role in delivering Ford’s electric vehicle plan in Europe,” said Lisa Brankin, chair and managing director of Ford Britain and Ireland.

(source – Ford)