Detroit university prepares Ford engineers for tomorrow

DETROIT // Ford Motor Company engineers are being retrained to work with electric cars. In a move that suggests Ford is seriously looking at alternatives to petrol engines, the company has partnered with the University of Detroit Mercy to retrain traditional engineers in its Advanced Electrical Vehicle Programme. The curriculum covers electric and hybrid cars and, next month, the first Ford employees will start the course. Participants will have to choose five disciplines, which include design, energy storage systems, power electronics and energy conversion. The plan is to eventually train 125 engineers. Dr Leo E. Hanifin, dean of the university's college of engineering says: "There's no time to waste, automotive engineers should be trained to design the cars of tomorrow."