In line with improving and upgrading quality of its products, SAIPA Automotive Group Company started manufacturing a hybrid engine for SHAHIN car at SAIPA Auto Manufacturing Research and Innovation Center in joint cooperation with Noushirvani University of Technology of Babol.

According to the Public Relations Department of SAIPA Group, CEO of SAIPA Automotive Group, CEO of SAIPA Group announced that his company is ready to take advantage of the ideas and knowledge-based projects of academic centers and Ministry of Science, Research and Technology in the field of manufacturing car and automotive spare parts.

Universities and academic centers in the country are the highest knowledge-based centers and relationship between the industry and university should be strengthened bilaterally, he said, adding, “Therefore, SAIPA Automotive Group is ready to host academics in order to solve problems facing automotive industry and take advantage of technical know-how, knowledge and expertise of academic centers of the country optimally.”

Moohammad-Ali Teimouri Chief Executive of SAIPA Automotive Group pointed to the dissatisfaction of Leader of the Islamic Revolution with the quality of cars manufactured at SAIPA Group in early days of his tenure as CEO of SAIPA Group and naming the current year after in 1401 “Production: Knowledge-based and Job-Creating”, and said, “If we want to increase quality of products, we cannot improve the quality without relying on high capabilities and potentials of knowledge-based centers, so that high capacities of knowledge-based centers should be used optimally which can help solve current and future problems of automotive industry of the country.”

Conditions of market for producing car in the country should be in such a way that knowledge-based centers and investment must be used in line with economic production, Teimouri emphasized. 

In previous management, investment was made for a period three years to design production line and manufacture a new product and finally, car production volume reduced which is no economical, he criticized. 

CEO of SAIPA Group then pointed to policymaking in automotive industry of the country and said that the issue of policymaking is important and effective in this industry that must be taken into serious consideration.

In this regard, “We expect the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology and universities in the country to help automotive and car manufacturing industry, so that policies adopted in this regard must be in line with supporting objectives of this industry.”

The country’s officials have adopted appropriate and accurate decisions in the field of taking advantage of nuclear technologies in a way that this issue i.e. using nuclear technology will help automotive industry of the country produce electric, hybrid and knowledge-based vehicles, he underlined. 

He pointed out that the new laws adopted in car manufacturing industry of the country are in accordance with the standards of car production in advanced countries, adding that only 28% of cars in the world are produced with 85 standards in a way that Iran’s car industry is included in this 28% as mentioned in above.

This is while that, today, world's major car manufacturing companies produce cars for countries where the 85 standards are not implemented in these countries, he criticized.

Universities and academic centers should not invest by themselves, rather, automotive industry should provide financial resources and facilities to universities, he said, adding that universities should sell their knowledge to car manufacturers and do think of commissioning a workshop and production line in the university.

The CEO of SAPA Group stated, “We expect academics to provide their technical knowledge to the automotive industry and in this regard, SAIPA Research and Innovation Center and also Megamotor Company, as SAIPA’s knowledge-based centers, are ready to cooperate and collaborate with universities and academic centers in the country wholeheartedly.”

In the current year, SAIPA Automotive Group has concentrated on producing new product, launching new production lines with world’s most modern technologies, Teimouri ended. 

Dr. Ali Khatibi Deputy Ministry of Science, Research and Technology for Administrative, Financial and Resources Management Affairs was the next speaker who said, “In line with the instructions of Leader of the Islamic Revolution on increasing quality of domestically-produced cars, we are ready to establish necessary cooperation and collaboration with domestic automakers and in this way, we are ready to provide these industries with high technical and engineering potentials of universities of the country.”

With the interaction made with SAIPA Group, this prestigious automaker became familiar with the level of knowledge and technical know-how of the universities and suitable ground was prepared to ink a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to broaden cooperation in relevant field, he added.

Dr. Khatibi went on to say that Noushirvani University of Technology of Babol enjoys high potentials in terms of technical and engineering know-how and is considered as one of the leading academic centers in the country in a way that cooperating with this academic center can pave the suitable way for establishing more cooperating with other universities of the country. 

Trusting in high capability and potential of talented youth in the country can help materialize most objectives, he said, adding, “As relying on high potentials of talented manpower in the country helped boost activities of defense industry, relying upon talented manpower will certainly work in automotive industry of the country.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, the Deputy Science Minister pointed to the high scientific and research capacity of the country and stated that the country is home to 150,000 students in Ph.D. level and also 400,000 to 500,000 students in Master’s degree who are busy working in scientific and research activities.

That is to say that these students with Ph.D. and Master’s degree do not principally tasked with training and teaching, rather, they have been tasked with conducting research activities, he said, adding that if each of the aforementioned students spends their time only four hours a day, it can be concluded that above one billion man/hour are conducting research activity in the country which is unique of its kind. 

Leader of the Islamic Revolution has placed special emphasis on knowledge-based issue and scientific capacity of the country, he emphasized. 

Dr. Kheireddin Deputy Minister of Science, Research and Technology for Technology and Innovation Affairs was the next speaker who said that Noushirvani University of Technology of Babol is one of the successful academic centers in the country in the field of industry and also research and technology.

Babol University of Technology has always been ranked among top academic center in national and international levels, he said, adding that SAIPA Automotive Group has made best selection in choosing this academic center to enhance its scientific cooperation and it is hoped that fossil fuel and car will be turned into a hybrid card and effective steps must be taken in line with self-driving and electric engines.”

Some part of revenues obtained by automakers and also industrial and production units must be considered for the Research & Development (R&D), he emphasized. 

Paying due attention to patent is an important issue that must be taken into serious consideration, he said, adding, “TOYOTA Auto Manufacturing Company has about nine patents daily while this figure is very low in the country. It is hoped that Iran Khodro Industrial Group (IKCO) and SAIPA Automotive Group would enter foreign and European patents in particular.”

The next speaker was Bahram Azizollah Ganji Chancellor of Noushirvani University of Technology of Babol who expressed this thanks to the unsparing cooperation and collaboration of CEO of SAIPA Automotive Group with the academic center.
It is hoped that cooperation between this academic center and Iran’s leading car manufacturing company would produce positive result. 

Seyyed Shahin Azbi CEO of SAIPA Automotive Group in Research and Innovation Center was the last speaker who pointed to the result of signing and sealing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Noushirvani University of Technology of Babol and SAIPA Automotive Group and said, “In addition to holding meeting with this academic center, we held three expert-level sessions with the participation of officials at Isfahan University of Technology and in this session, university officials voiced their readiness to cooperate and collaborate with SAIPA Automotive Group.”

In addition, Industrial Research Organization has also voiced its readiness to establish necessary cooperation with SAIPA Automotive Group, he ended.