Interview "You are part of it"

G: Tell us about yourself, your project and your team.

A: About myself, or better how I accepted the ideas of SEM =) :

In 2007, I, 4th year student, was lucky to attend the competition "Shell eco-marathon" which took place in France, in town of Nogaro, Gascony. It was a fantastic trip. First of all the country itself - France! For me as a person born in the Soviet Union it is a country in which the action of the novel "The Three Musketeers" by Alexandre Dumas took place. And what was my happiness when one evening we dined in the box of Athos, Porthos and Aramis.

There were only three of us from the Ukraine, and we were welcomed very warm and concern. The biggest impression left the contact with the participants of competition. In the vast majority they were very talented teenagers, educated, communicative and funny guys. I was amazed by simple and at the same time innovative designs of their vehicles. I think that always and everywhere the most important thing is people! Everything else is created by them!

About the team:

Of course, immediately after returning to Ukraine, I started telling all my friends about what I saw and what surprised me. Most of my friends are my colleagues, those with whom I work in the laboratory of high-speed cars of Kharkiv National Automobile and Highway University. This is a very professional and well-known group, which develops racing cars and vehicles for setting up speed records. And just in the first day it was suggested several options for the project. Thus work on the project began. Mainly we engaged in off-hours, because at once the project became regarded as "childish" and uninteresting for professionals. And now, in 2012 it has grown almost in a national project =)

One the most difficult tasks for us was to find a sponsor for this project, as we had not any experience in this area. And here we express a huge thanks to the representatives of the company «Shell» in Ukraine for permanent consultative support =)

The basic principle of the formation of the collective of the team is a real permanent work, we are always open for all, and the main thing is the desire! The main slogan – a desire is a thousand possibilities, reluctance is a thousand excuses!

So we formed a team that, just like any other collective, is composed of individuals united by a common idea and set a single goal to represent Ukraine in the student competition of design ideas «Shell eco-marathon». Naturally, since 2007, our team constantly changed its composition, somebody graduated from the university and began to work, someone, not being a student, learned about our project and joined us. The team is a living organism, the main thing that we have is a permanent system of education among the participant, when the more experienced teach newcomers, but sometimes it happens vice versa. =)

Participation in the «Shell eco-marathon» means for us first of all an educational program; we learn both personal and team level! And now our purpose is to gain experience, to work on our own result, moving slowly in the ranking of the teams. It is precisely in the ranking, because the conditions of competition are changing, are changing routes, and to judge the success of the team only by its numerical result in kilometers on one liter of fuel is I think more superficially. We participate in the group of prototypes in the gasoline class, it is one of most popular and most numerous classes, and our intermediate goal is to join the leaders in this class, of course, we dream of an absolute leadership, but it needs a lot more work!

G: Which solutions invented for your vehicle could be applied in automotive sector?

A: In automotive sector we could use of composite materials for car body panels and the algorithm of modes of car movement on the highway.

And of course, people who are young professionals that already have real experience of creating energy-efficient vehicles.

Specialists are the staple!

G: Which solution are you most proud of?

A: Conventionally, we had three stages in the evolution of the project car. And finally, implemented version of this is the car with a monocoque body made ​​of composite materials. The usage of composite materials in load-bearing design of the car is a new trend in the Ukrainian automotive industry. Now we are working on obtaining a patent for this technology. A young man, whose authorship of the technical ideas of this project is undeniable, is fond of aviation, which is reflected in our project in aviation ergonomics of our car.

Now we are cooperating with the company «Honda» in Ukraine. This is a great success for us, because «Honda» is a recognized world leader in energy efficient technologies. And we have much to learn here! And the most striking thing is that the ideology of the company «Honda» and «Shell eco-marathon» totally coincide! I am sure we will achieve considerable success by continuing this cooperation.

It was very nice when in 2010, in Lausitz, the director of the «Shell eco-marathon» entered our box, who, as usual, checked all the debutants of the competition. And he said, "Guys, why don't you enter a contest for the best design of the car. This is the best thing I saw today!" It was very nice, but the opportunity has been missed.

For the Ukrainian automotive community, it is certainly bizarre and unusual car, nevertheless, the whole car has turned out very competitive and our results confirm this.

G: Would you decide to drive KHADI 34 in Kiev or on a long distance travel?

A: No unfortunately =)

This is a rather relevant question, because we still cannot find the necessary platform for testing of our vehicle. Our car is too 'delicate' to move in the harsh conditions of Ukrainian roads.

We haven't found a flat area with good road surface, which would not have been loaded with transport. So, unfortunately, in 2010 the first serious test drive of our cars was held on the track in Lausitz. Before the competition in 2011 we had created a special stand that simulates the movement of the car on the track. Now we are solving the problem of run test by less traditional way. =)

Every day, you can see our car in the laboratory of high-speed automobiles KhNAHU. Just come and I will be pleased to tell you about our current news and about the project as a whole. We also conduct the blog http://khadi34rus.blogspot.com/.

In addition, we participate in all automotive events in Kharkiv, in international exhibitions devoted to energy and modern technologies, in all official events and promotions of our university. The members of our team organize the rally of economy. And in all these events there is our car itself or as an image. Especially it worth mentioning that our team participates in the motor-races. The purpose of motor race is to tell the pupils about the problems of Ukraine's road safety, the environment, a reasonable approach to the issues of energy production and consumption, on the example of our positive experience. And this is a very important part of our work, because the children are our future.

G: Where can we see KHADI 34 in action?

A: In Ukraine you can see KHADI 34 in action mainly during the demonstration driving to reporters. We invite everyone to these events. For details see our blog and stay tuned.

Thank you for your interesting questions.

I hope for a meeting in the SEM 2012.

G: Thank you for your time :) I’ll keep my fingers crossed for your team and hope to meet you soon!