In collaboration with the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), we are pleased to announce the inaugural Altair Enlighten Award, the automotive industry’s first award program created specifically to acknowledge innovations in vehicle light-weighting. The award is open to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), systems/parts suppliers and materials suppliers from all automotive industry segments.

The award aims to recognize achievements in weight reduction across the automotive industry from motorcycles to passenger cars, light-trucks to commercial vehicles and buses. The Altair Enlighten Award provides a platform to showcase the success stories, allowing industry leaders to be recognized by their peers and emphasizing the need to achieve the next level of light-weighting technology.

The award aligns with the goals of CAR’s Coalition for Automotive Lightweighting Materials (CALM) initiative to support the cost-effective integration of mixed materials to achieve significant reductions in vehicle mass through the collaborative efforts of the material sectors and auto manufacturers.

The objectives of the Altair Enlighten Award are to:

• Honor the greatest achievements in weight saving each year
• Inspire interest from policymakers, educators, students and the general public in the environmental impact, technical depth and diversity of weight saving innovations
• Create further competition for new ideas within the industry
• Provide an incentive to share technological advances

Key Dates

• Applications for the 2013 Altair Enlighten Award will be accepted from November. 1, 2012 to June. 14, 2013
• Finalists will be interviewed in June & July 2013
• Winners will be announced in August 2013

To allow sharing of innovation to further this goal, while respecting the business and technical confidentiality of all applications, designs submitted must be implemented on a production vehicle produced between August 2011 and August 2013, with no geographical restrictions.

All entries should be sent to enlightenaward@altair.com

Judging Panel

		Dr. Jay Baron – President and CEO, Center for Automotive Research, Ann Arbor, MI and director of the CAR’s Coalition for Automotive Lightweighting Materials (CALM)
		Dr. Royston Jones – Altair ProductDesign Europe President
		Harvey Bell – Professor of engineering practice and co-director of the Multidisciplinary Design Program at The University of Michigan
		Lynn Bishop – Vice President of engineering services at Pratt & Miller Engineering
		Dr. Imtiaz Haque – Founding chair and executive director of the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research
		Dr. Clemens Schmitz-Justen - Founder and head of strategic consulting, CSJ Schmitz-Justen & Company, former director of international programs at the Clemson University College of Business and Behavioral Science, and former president of BMW Manufacturing LLC in Spartanburg, S.C.
		Chris Theodore – President of Theodore & Associates automotive industry consulting; former CEO of ASC, Inc., vice president of Ford Motor Co. and senior vice president of DaimlerChrysler; and former executive director of  North American advanced vehicle development at General Motors

Rules of the Altair Enlighten Award

Eligibility

The 2013 Altair Enlighten Award (“Award”) is open to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), systems/parts suppliers and materials suppliers from all automotive industry segments, who are nominated (as defined below) for the Altair Enlighten Award (“Nominee(s)”).  Altair Engineering, Inc. (“Altair”) and the Center for Automotive Research (“CAR”) are the sponsors of this Award (Altair and CAR collectively, the “Sponsor”).  These Award rules govern the Award (“Award Rules”).

Submitting a Nomination

• A Nomination for a Nominee may be submitted on behalf of an OEM, a supplier or may be a joint Nomination involving two or more entities such as an OEM and a supplier (“Nomination”)
  • Nominations from tier-suppliers must have received prior approval from the appropriate OEM before submitting a Nomination for designs
• Multiple Nominations by an organization are acceptable
  • A component or system can be submitted for consideration only once.
• The system or component must be fitted to an automotive vehicle (motorcycle, passenger car, light truck, commercial truck or bus) in production between August, 2011, and August, 2013.
  • A specific production volume is not a criterion, but a vehicle fitted with the nominated system or component must be available for purchase during the production window specified.
• Nominations must be received between November 1, 2012, and June 14, 2013.
  • Entries can only be submitted using the official nomination form available on the AltairEnlighten.com website
  • Receipt of a nomination form will be acknowledged via email.
  • Additional supporting materials (including representative parts) may be provided but must be received before June 14, 2013.
• Submission of a nomination grants Altair permission to publish claims and images provided, with acknowledgement of the rights-holder, for the purposes of Altair Enlighten Prize communications.

Judging Criteria

• The judging panel consists of an Altair representative and a CAR representative who will chair a group of recognized industry experts.
• Successful entries will:
  • Show significant weight saving over a comparable baseline component or system
  • Demonstrate a design solution that is novel to the industry
• Preference will be given to entries that:
  • Provide a solution that is applicable to other applications/programs
  • Present a multi-material design
  • Deliver a cost-neutral product
  • Employ an innovative design process

Preliminary Judging

• Communication about the nomination will be directed solely to the lead contact of the nominating team specified on the nomination form.
  • In the event that the lead contact leaves the organization during the judging process, a replacement can be submitted.
• Preliminary judging will be based solely on the quality of the entry submitted via the nomination form and any supporting material provided.
  • In some instances the judging committee may contact a nominee for more information.
• Selection of finalists will be made during June and July, 2013; all entrants will be informed of the finalists in August 2013.
  • A joint Altair/CAR press release publicly announcing the finalists will be made after the entrants have been informed.

Final Judging

• Communication about final judging will be directed solely to the lead contact on the nominating team.
• Final judging will be based on a presentation made by the nominating team.
  • The logistics of the presentation will be arranged individually with each finalist and may be either via a physical meeting or Web conference
• The judging committee will meet to decide the winning entry and honorable mentions during July, 2013.

Altair Enlighten Award Recognition

• The winning entrant(s) will be announced during the CAR MBS 2013 event (Traverse City, Mich.,) in August.
  • The Altair Enlighten Award trophy will be presented to the winner and honorable mentions announced.
• A joint Altair/CAR press release will be made during MBS.
  • This will announce the winner and honorable mentions.
• The winning entrant will be featured in a significant advertisement placed in a major industry magazine.