January 2020

n NEWS NEWS n January 2020 www.drivesncontrols.com 12 A BRITISH START-UP is hoping to revolutionise the way that parcels and other small items are moved by carrying them in pipes on carts propelled by a proprietary linear synchronous motor technology. London-based Magway reckons that its technology could cut the UK’s CO 2 emissions by more than six million tonnes a year by reducing the number of delivery vans on our roads. Magway was founded in 2017 by Rupert Cruise and Phill Davies who were inspired by Elon Musk’s Hyperloop proposal for transporting passengers at supersonic speeds through vacuum tunnels. Magway’s transporters would travel at a more sedate “optimal” speed of 31mph, milliseconds apart, in 90cm-diameter plastic pipes which would not need to be evacuated. The pipes could run underground or overground, next to road or rail routes, or in existing tunnel structures. Magway has already attracted almost £1.5m in funding and grants, including more than £650,000 from Innovate UK to build a prototype system. Magway’s partners in the Innovate project include Ocado Innovation, the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) and the Leicestershire-based linear motor specialist, Force Engineering. Magway has also launched a crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube which has achieved more than 70% of its £750,000 target. Magway says that the biggest group of backers in this campaign have been 18-30-year-olds. The company has built a demonstration system at its Wembley headquarters and is initially hoping to construct short-distance delivery systems at airports and between warehouses. It expects to start building a wider UK network of pipes, spanning hundreds of kilometres, in 2023. Its ambitious plans include installing 850km of track in decommissioned gas pipelines under London. It estimates that that if this was done, 94% of London’s daytime population could be within a 15-minute walk or cycle of a Magway station where they could collect their parcels. Magway recently appointed Anna Daroy, former CEO of the Institute of Directors, as its managing director. “Magway has big ideas,” she says, “and big ideas are exactly what are needed right now to help move the UK closer to providing a lower-carbon, less congested and safer transport infrastructure, capable of dealing with the huge growth in e-commerce deliveries. “Not enough is being done to address the future of our transport infrastructure,” Daroy adds. “Without a significant step change in managing how billions of parcels and goods reach our doors, delivery traffic will continue to increase along with the levels of toxic air we breathe.” www.magway.com Linear-motor-driven delivery system could remove vans from UK’s roads Magway plans to send small packages in totes carried by carts driven by linear motors A CONSORTIUMOF British business has received a £9m grant from the government to help design, produce and integrate a hybrid-electric propulsion system into a nine-seater Britten-Norman (B-N) Islander aircraft, which is typically used on short flights such as island- hopping. The Project Fresson consortium brings together: Rolls-Royce, which will supply the power management system; the Denis Ferranti Group, which will supply the electric motors; Delta Motorsport, providing the battery packs; WMG (University of Warwick), which will perform battery testing; Cranfield Aerospace Solutions (CAeS), an aircraft integrator specialising in green commercial aviation; and the plane-maker, Britten-Norman. CAeS’parent Cranfield University will research key technologies during the 30- month project. The £9m grant is being provided through the ATI Programme – a partnership of the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI), the Department for Business, Energy & Industry Strategy, and Innovate UK, which is aimed at maintaining and expanding the UK’s position in civil aerospace design and manufacturing. “Project Fresson brings together a great partnership to develop innovative technology for a sustainable all-electric air transport solution for isolated islands,” explains Mark Scully, the ATI’s head of technology for advanced systems and propulsion.“The partners’ultimate goal of delivering the first commercial passenger- carrying all-electric aircraft service in the UK will mark a significant breakthrough for all-electric propulsion.” “The results of this exciting electric aircraft demonstrator project can be rapidly developed into an EASA/CAA certified modification kit, enabling the UK to lead the way with the first passenger- carrying sub-regional aircraft capable of all-electric flight,”adds CAeS CEO, Paul Hutton.“This is going to accelerate our green transport revolution.” Following the demonstrator project, CAeS plans to certify the modification. It will then be available to the global market, allowing operators of the 400-plus Islanders in service to convert their aircraft to hybrid operation, cutting their operating costs and carbon footprints. In future phases, the aim is to design and implement a similar modification on an existing 19-seat sub-regional aircraft, and to design and build a new 19-seat aircraft. £9m grant will help to convert short-hop planes to hybrid-electric operation Project Fresson will develop a hybrid-electric propulsion system for the B-N Islander aircraft