L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 2022 www.italoamericano.org 28 L'Italo-Americano D r i v e n b y t h e c o m p e l l i n g need to make o u r p l a n e t s u s t a i n a b l e , I t a l i a n e n g i n e e r M a r i o C a r a n d e n t e h a s a l w a y s been motivated to take on a leadership role to achieve sustainable transformation in urban mobility. After graduating from the U n i v e r s i t y F e d e r i c o I I i n N a p l e s i n 2 0 1 2 , M a r i o moved to the United King- dom where he obtained a Ph.D. sponsored by Jaguar Land Rover. Thanks to it the young man, who grew up in t h e c a p i t a l o f C a m p a n i a , Naples, became head engi- neer of design and engineer- ing for high-performance a u t o m a k e r s a t M c L a r e n Automotive. I n 2 0 2 1 , M a r i o m o v e d with his wife and daughter t o B o s t o n , M A , w h e r e h e embarked on a new adven- t u r e , b u t w h e r e h i s g o a l remained the same: focus- ing on sustainable innova- tions in the automotive and mobility space. Mario, how did your career in this industry begin? I started my journey in t h e a u t o m o t i v e i n d u s t r y b a c k i n 2 0 1 2 w h e n I w a s awarded a scholarship from Jaguar Land Rover and the E P S R C i n t h e U K f o r a P h . D . i n m e c h a n i c a l a n d a u t o m o t i v e e n g i n e e r i n g . With my research, I have contributed to the develop- ment of sustainable light- w e i g h t m a t e r i a l s w h i c h helped reduce the weight of a vehicle's architecture, con- t r i b u t i n g t o s i g n i f i c a n t improvements in fuel effi- ciency and CO2 emissions. M y P h . D . i n s p i r e d m y c a r e e r i n t h e a u t o m o t i v e industry and, since then, I h a d t h e o p p o r t u n i t y t o i n f l u e n c e a n d l e a d t h e design and engineering of iconic automobiles both at J a g u a r L a n d R o v e r a n d McLaren. Examples of my work are the Jaguar XE and F-Type, Range Rover, and several McLaren including GT, 720S, Speedtail, Elva, and Artura. H o w d i d t h i s f i e l d change over the years? Since I started, the auto- m o t i v e i n d u s t r y c h a n g e d drastically. An automotive company is now a technolo- g y c o m p a n y m o r e t h a n a m a n u f a c t u r i n g c o m p a n y . I t ' s a l l a b o u t t h e l e v e l o f t e c h t h e y c a n d e p l o y , whether it's advanced con- nectivity, electric platforms, o r a u t o n o m o u s m o b i l i t y . Expectations are continually changing, too. Extras that wer e consider ed l uxur ies even 10 years ago are now standard. W h a t ' s t h e b i g g e s t change that needs to be addressed? A u t o m a k e r s n e e d t o quickly adapt to this highly competitive environment. M a n y E V d i s r u p t o r s a r e entering the market with i n n o v a t i v e p r o d u c t s . I t ' s vital, therefore, for many companies to re-think their product development and R&D strategies to introduce n e w t e c h n o l o g i e s t o t h e market faster and cost-effi- ciently. All automakers are learning how to implement agile product development practices, which enable the integration of hardware and software because cars are becoming more connected to their surrounding ecosys- tem. What is the thing you brought into this field you are more proud of? This is where my experi- ence at McLaren becomes very relevant. Legacy OEMs can learn a lot from super- c a r m a n u f a c t u r e r s . T h e y know how to differentiate in a very competitive environ- ment where performance, quality, and innovation are key to the customers. For e x a m p l e , w i t h M c L a r e n Artura I have been working on the development of one o f t h e b e s t - p e r f o r m i n g hybrid supercars available on the market. The 3.0-liter engine makes up 577 horse- power working in conjunc- tion with an electric motor that contributes up to 94 horsepower. In addition, the car has about 20 miles of r a n g e w i t h i t s e l e c t r i c motor. This is perfect when driving in urban areas. W h a t ' s t h e b i g g e s t challenge, in your opin- ion? I a m s t i l l d e b a t i n g whether fully electric vehi- cles will be the solution in all contexts. Batteries have so many problems that need t o b e s o l v e d b e f o r e t h i s technology can be scaled to mass production. The com- plexity of the supply chain is a big issue, too, and infra- structures need to provide enough charging stations and electric capacity. In my opinion, we will see multi- ple solutions depending on the specific cases. For exam- ple, the use of hydrogen for airplanes and heavy-duty trucks is becoming a com- pelling solution. In addition, we also need to consider the CO2 generated during the manufacturing process and along the supply chain. Sus- t a i n a b l e a n d r e c y c l a b l e materials, made with low- e n e r g y m a n u f a c t u r i n g processes will become a pri- ority for automakers if they want to meet their emission targets. The Fullbright Entre- p r e n e u r s h i p A w a r d allowed you to enroll in a Sloan Fellows MBA at M I T f o c u s i n g o n t h e technological and infra- structural innovations in the future of mobility a n d t r a n s p o r t a t i o n . What is motivating you? After an incredible expe- rience at McLaren, where I w a s d i r e c t i n g s p o r t s c a r design, I decided to take a break and go back to study- ing. I realized that beyond the engineering aspect, an essential feature for every business leader is the ability to analyze the business itself and dictate new strategic visions. This is especially true in the automotive sec- tor, which is experiencing a p e r i o d o f c o n s i d e r a b l e " d e s t r u c t i o n . " D o i n g a n MBA was always my goal and studying at MIT is the d r e a m o f e v e r y e n g i n e e r . T h e M B A a l l o w e d m e t o learn new notions of busi- ness and finance but, above all, to meet many interna- tional managers from whom I l e a r n e d n e w l e a d e r s h i p perspectives. My next role is in management consulting, f o c u s i n g o n t h e m o b i l i t y sector. In this role, I will h a v e t h e o p p o r t u n i t y t o work with many organiza- tions that provide innova- tive solutions for electrifica- tion, autonomous driving, connectivity, and renewable energy. What is your hope for the future? I am very excited to see what comes next and be part of the imminent automotive revolution that will lead our planet toward net zero emis- sions. Mario Carandente: the Italian engineer leading the change in automotive sustainability SILVIA GIUDICI Carandente and one of the cars he helped design (Photo courtesy of McLaren) LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE TRADITIONS

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