terça-feira, 17 de março de 2009

Should machinists be worried that EVs will cost them their Jobs?



One of the reasons electric vehicles are so efficient has to do with their lack of complexity. Electric motors have very few moving parts and often don't require the complicated transmissions and driveline components that are common for internal combustion engines.

According to the Nikkei in Japan, "The rise of electric vehicles will spell more than the demise of just the internal combustion engine. Transmissions and braking systems will likely be replaced by electric control motors as well. A gasoline-powered car consists of roughly 30,000 parts, half of them related to the engine. Electric vehicles are expected to require one-tenth of that."

While those are all good things for purchasers of EVs, the thousand of individuals that make their livings devising and repairing the inner-workings of the automobile are reportedly worried about their job prospects. Of course, electric vehicles present their own set of technologies and components and won't wholly replace the internal combustion engine overnight, so there's no real need to be concerned with a reduction in jobs. The last time we brought this subject up was a year ago and you can still find a lot of good comments in that discussion thread.

[Source: Nikkei via TTAC]

Sem comentários: