2024-11-19 22:28:00
The Canadian car shifts into second gear. The Quebec manufacturer LeddarTech welcomed the national association of automobile parts manufacturers to its offices in the Saint-Laurent borough on Tuesday, to convince the Quebec automobile industry to embark on Project Arrow 2.0, which aims to build by 2028 a dozen entirely Canadian vehicles.
For several years, LeddarTech has been designing advanced driving assistance components, which are often nicknamed autonomous driving. The equipment manufacturer participated in the initial Project Arrow from 2020, which led to the construction of a prototype which was also demonstrated in Montreal on Tuesday. Earlier this week, the Canadian Auto Parts Association (APMA) announced that it had received $7 million from the federal government to continue the development of this project.
The idea this time was to generate interest among other Quebec companies in the second generation of this project, which will take more concrete form from 2026. The APMA says it already has a dozen Quebec partners, out of some 160 requests for participation from across the country.
Investissement Québec, the Innovative Vehicle Institute (IVI) and the InnovÉÉ organization were present at LeddarTech. The provincial government had already contributed to the first generation Project Arrow.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, LA PRESSE
Project Arrow 2.0 will take shape in 2026.
From resources to technology
“Canada is rich in critical materials and resources for the automotive sector, but technology and innovation can also come from here,” declared APMA President Flavio Volpe on site. “And as I often say, the Canadian automotive adventure would not exist without Quebec. »
The “real” Project Arrow dates back to the 1950s. The federal government and the Canadian military teamed up with AV Roe Canada (Avro) to design the CF-105 Arrow, a fighter plane capable of reaching twice the speed sound, at an altitude of 50,000 feet (15,000 meters). The project was abandoned in 1959. The Prime Minister at the time, John Diefenbaker, found that the Soviet threat which justified the creation of such an aircraft was no longer so important.
Project Arrow has long been seen as Ottawa’s disavowal of the Canadian aerospace industry.
It was to avoid a similar fate that the APMA did not stop after a single prototype of its own Arrow project. It’s an opportunity to present to the rest of the automotive world “the level of world-class innovation that we have in Canada,” says Flavio Volpe.
The current prototype is fully functional and has already toured the world. The APMA and its equipment manufacturer members use it as a business card with potential partners elsewhere in the world.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, LA PRESSE
The prototype developed as part of Project Arrow is functional and has toured the world.
“Without this vehicle, many of these companies would have no presence at international industry events. »
“National industries” difficult to conceive
The global ambitions of Project Arrow 2.0 do not overshadow the more than intimate relationship that the Canadian automotive sector maintains with its counterparts in the United States and Mexico. The automobile industry is Canada’s second largest export sector to Uncle Sam. It exported 51 billion vehicles and vehicle parts in 2023; 93% of these exports went to the United States.
In this context, the election of an openly protectionist president could cause concern, as the Canadian auto industry seems so dependent on the American market. Within the industry, we see things differently: this osmosis would be an advantage.
“For us, this election changes nothing, at least for the moment,” he told The Press LeddarTech’s Chief Technology Officer, Pierre Olivier.
The North American industry is so integrated. It is difficult to imagine a return to separate national industries. This is too simplistic a vision.
Pierre Olivier, Chief Technology Officer of LeddarTech
In fact, North American manufacturers of electrical or technological components could benefit from tightening borders, since in the automotive sector, the United States seems to have it especially against China.
From this angle, Project Arrow 2.0 could in reality be a Canadian Trojan horse in a United States once again led by a very protectionist president.
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How does the integration of the Canadian automotive industry with its American and Mexican counterparts challenge the notion of a sustainable national industry?
Odule textModule–type-paragraph ” style=””>The integration of the Canadian automotive industry with its American and Mexican counterparts raises questions about the sustainability of a “national industry” in the face of globalization. As companies strive for efficiency and competitive advantage, they often find themselves deeply entwined in international supply chains. This reality poses challenges for any singularly Canadian initiative like Project Arrow 2.0, which aims to position Canada as a leader in automotive innovation.
Moreover, the Canadian market’s reliance on U.S. technology and supplies highlights a need for stronger domestic manufacturing capabilities. By fostering innovation through projects such as Arrow 2.0, Canadian industry leaders hope to not only showcase the nation’s technological prowess but also build a more self-sufficient automotive sector that can operate independently while still engaging in vital cross-border trade.
“We’re not just building cars; we’re building a future,” said Volpe, emphasizing the transformative potential of the Arrow initiative. This sentiment encapsulates the ambition behind Project Arrow 2.0 as it looks to contribute to a sustainable automotive ecosystem that aligns with global environmental goals.
As Project Arrow 2.0 moves toward its projected launch in 2026, it represents more than a vehicle; it is a call to action for Canadian ingenuity, aiming to revive and modernize the nation’s automotive industry in an increasingly competitive global landscape.