Currently, Polish industry does not have its own technologies or expertise that would allow it to build a domestic brand of electric cars only by relying on its own resources. However, the strategies of ElectroMobility are aimed at regular cooperation with Polish companies and research units that will lead to the development and implementation of mass production of its technological solutions.
As soon as the production of the first Polish electric car begins, some of the key components, such as the battery or drive, will be supplied by global manufacturers. When it comes to organizing the initial stages of production, it is crucial to think at first about companies located in our country and their role in this process. Specialization and development of R&D in terms of technology can contribute to radical changes in the Polish market of automotive industry suppliers.
THE POLISH AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY IS THE SECOND-LARGEST INDUSTRIAL SECTOR IN THE COUNTRY.
In Poland, about 500 different automotive components are produced with the aid of foreign technologies. Due to branches of global companies, our country has become Europe’s largest producer of parts and components for the automotive industry. Apart from the Polish branches of foreign companies – producers of parts and components, native companies also work for global players, and in so doing they are boosting their technological and mechanical potential. About 80% of the production of Polish automotive companies are intended for export, which is a solid basis for building a supply chain for the Polish brand of electric cars.
ELECTROMOBILITY POSES A CHALLENGE FOR THE ENTIRE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
Poland is a significant player on the automotive map of Europe. Polish companies have recently been tested by the competitive demands of the industry, to which they have responded by offering high-quality products at competitive prices. Production plants located in Poland offer an almost full range of parts and components necessary to manufacture a car. The electromobility revolution is not only about challenges related to changing the way that electric cars are used but is also about technological differences between combustion cars and electric cars, or the need to build charging infrastructure etc. The entire automotive industry has to face the challenges associated with the specificity of the production of internal combustion drives for electric cars. In addition to the significantly smaller number of parts themselves, their specificity also changes.
According to the report of PKO SA, “Future of the automotive sector in Poland”, it employs approximately 225 thousand people, and this is the second-largest industrial branch in the country. Poland, like other countries strongly associated with supplies for the automotive industry, faces challenges resulting from changing production characteristics and their adaptation to the needs of a changing industry. According to PKO S.A. analysts, approximately 20% of the range currently produced in Poland must be adapted to new technologies, and as much as 35% of parts such as exhaust systems, gearboxes, clutches and all components of the internal combustion engine are not used in electric cars, so the demand for them will be systematically reduced. These trends clearly show the need to transform the sector.
A DOMESTIC BRAND OF ELECTRIC CARS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO COORDINATE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT WORKS AND GRATER INDUSTRIALIZATION OF PROJECTS.
The emergence of a Polish mass brand of electric cars may prove to be an impulse for changes among domestic companies. Ensuring contract stability and a well-defined direction of research, development, coordination and cooperation in this area can not only contribute to technological advancement, but will also allow for raising the position of Polish producers in the ranks of suppliers and thus work at higher margins.
Such a change would mean that Poland would be not only a contractor of components for foreign corporations, but also a supplier of its own technologies that could become competitive in terms of quality and price. Short and long-term challenges can contribute to the production of our local specialization around electric cars. According to experts, future-related design areas with electromobility are battery management systems, an electric car, dynamically developing vehicle ICT systems, driver assistance systems and in the field of vehicle autonomy (ADAS). Highly qualified graduates of technical universities are already working in Polish research centres of foreign companies. A clearly defined research agenda, consistency in project implementation and sectoral collaboration can enable project’s industrialization. Creating a Polish brand of electric cars can enable their mass use, and thus help develop its technological solutions.
The electromobility revolution is both a challenge for the Polish automotive industry but also a unique opportunity for its development, in new areas in particular. The train called electromobility has started, and it is up to us what kind of passengers we want to be.
The sector will develop regardless of the future of the Polish electric car project. However, this project gives us a unique opportunity to progress rapidly. The Polish automotive industry will be the primary beneficiary of the project’s success by developing with it and creating its own competitive solutions.
Andrzej Dąbrowski
Dyrektor łańcucha dostaw
ElectroMobility Poland