Mike Brace

Holder of Numerous Patents in Materials Science
Before devoting himself to the EV industry, Mike distinguished himself as an aerospace composite structures engineer. He was instrumental in the design, manufacturing and testing of aircraft and spacecraft flight hardware for several large aviation firms including General Dynamics, Sikorsky, Martin-Marietta, and Goodyear Aerospace. As a result, Mike brings to the table an extensive range of experience with composite fabrication methods, including:

Vacuum bag lay-ups
Autoclave curing
Resin transfer molding
Filament winding
Compression molding

This background provides Mike with a seasoned eye with which to evaluate much of the new technological advances seen in today's EV arena. Mike has several patents in composite component design and fabrication methods. In fact, much of what we see today -- and what we will see tomorrow -- started out on his note pad.

15+ Year Commitment to EVs
In 1993, Mike began to apply his knowledge of ultra-light structures to the design, prototyping, testing and manufacturing to the emerging market of EVs, hybrids and fuel-celled powered vehicles, and to the mechanical components that comprise them. He has designed, fabricated prototyped, tested and produced a range of DC-powered all-electric off-road utility vehicles (aircraft tugs), vehicles weighing less than 1,500 lbs. to those over 12,000 lbs., built to move any scale of aircraft, from Cessna to Boeing.

Enova
Mike has designed, fabricated, tested and set up manufacturing for on-road electric vehicles (AC & DC powered) for use in the US and abroad. Working for US Electricar (now Enova), he was responsible for the bumper-to-bumper design, prototype fabrication, testing and manufacturing of a full-scale, DC-powered, all-electric, flat bed truck, all made from off-the-shelf technology. He also worked on the AC-drive conversion for the postal vehicles in a similar capacity in Torrance, CA.

Clark
Later, Mike was the Product Manager for all electric vehicles at Clark Forklift Manufacturing (USA). His primary responsibility was the continual evolution of the whole electric vehicle product line at Clark. He ran the EV service department as well and was responsible for customer interface for specialty vehicles. Mike functioned as the liaison between marketing and engineering, and helped determine the feasibility of customer needs against engineering and manufacturing capabilities. He introduced Clark to the AC-driven and fuel cell-driven forklift.

Emerson
Recently, Mike was hired as the Senior R&D Engineer at Emerson Power Transmission (EPT) (www.emerson.com) to design, fabricate and test the integrated electrical power transmission components (motor, reduction & control) for a hybrid drive system in a 30,000 pound delivery truck. Mike is now the Manager of the R&D group, where he is responsible for the design and fabrication of all unique test lab equipment.

EVs at Home
Mike does not leave his interest in EVs at the office; he builds them as a hobby as well. He currently drives an electric motorcycle of his own design, featuring only six moving power transmission components including the wheels. It can achieve 70 mph, and, except for the tires, is completely maintenance free.

Education
1975 - 1978 US Air Force Academy [Colorado Springs,CO]
Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering

1979 - 1980 Oregon State University [Corvallis, OR]
BS Engineering with minor in Materials Engineering

Military Experience
1980-1986 US Marine Corps, Captain (O3) A-6 Intruder Pilot

Accreditations
Jet Pilot, US Navy; Nuclear Weapons Delivery
FAA Certified Single & Multi-engine, Commercial & Instrument Pilot

SCUBA Instructor

Patents and publications
8 US Patents & 2 International approved, several pending
Numerous technical presentations
Professional memberships
CoGSME, SME, AOPA

Case Studies

The Challenge
While working as a design and manufacturing engineer for US Electricar (USE), Mike was tasked with the design and fabrication of an entirely new electrically driven inner-city delivery truck for use in developing nations. Itochu, a major Japanese trading conglomerate, wished to develop and market this vehicle for worldwide distribution and outsourced the entire development project to Mike and his team at USE, including:

Evaluating the environment

Determining the infrastructure needed

Establishing the needs of the vehicle for this environment

Building 15 prototypes of the vehicle

Setting up production, should the project prove feasible

The Project
Itochu demanded a very robust, virtually maintenance-free inner-city delivery truck whose design and basic components could be transported to any city in the developing world, e.g. Manila or Nairobi, and to utilize local fabrication methods and locally available batteries for production. Itochu felt there would be a market for such a vehicle, and specified a minimum payload capacity of 2500 pounds, a range of 30 miles, and a top speed of 35 mph.

Mike evaluated the capabilities of USE's product line and assessed the best overall approach to meet the performance parameters desired by Itochu. With a clear idea of what USE could manufacture, Mike specified the axles, the entire DC drive system, and the entire electrical system. He designed the frame and helped design the cab as well. When the design was complete, Mike took all specifications to Mexico City, where the components would be sourced and the prototypes assembled, in keeping with the client's mandate regarding cities in developing counties.

USE paired up with Alfa, a mini-bus manufacturer in Puebla (near Mexico City) where he helped design assembly fixtures and source components from local vendors. Mike then put together a team of local engineers to assist in pre-production.

The Results
Mike spent eight months bringing the vehicle to fruition. The final product was a vehicle that far exceeded expectations, with a payload of 3,000 lbs, a range of 45 miles, and a top speed of 45 mph.

The vehicle was given to several regional customers and put into service for a period of six months. It was an overall success with very little re-engineering or retrofitting needed; it was extremely robust and withstood the abusive side streets of Mexico City day after day without any instance of failure or lack of performance.

The final product had a build cost of $13,745 with a retail price of $19,990. It was very competitive with the only other vehicle of choice, a flatbed conversion of the popular Nissan pick-up. Mike's vehicle was priced at $2000 more than the Nissan, but because the entire drive system had only eight moving parts (including the wheels), Mike's design was virtually maintenance free, a very appealing characteristic.