Program Evaluation - Automotive Lightweighting Materials Program Research and Development Projects Assessment of Benefits - Case Studies No. 2

This report is the second of a series of studies to evaluate research and development (R&D) projects funded by the Automotive Lightweighting Materials (ALM) Program of the Office of Advanced Automotive Technologies (OAAT) of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The objectives of the program evaluation are to assess short-run outputs and long-run outcomes that may be attributable to the ALM R&D projects. The ALM program focuses on the development and validation of advanced technologies that significantly reduce automotive vehicle body and chassis weight without compromising other attributes such as safety, performance, recyclability, and cost. Funded projects range from fundamental materials science research to applied research in production environments. Collaborators on these projects include national laboratories, universities, and private sector firms, such as leading automobile manufacturers and their suppliers. Three ALM R&D projects were chosen for this evaluation: Design and Product Optimization for Cast Light Metals, Durability of Lightweight Composite Structures, and Rapid Tooling for Functional Prototyping of Metal Mold Processes. These projects were chosen because they have already been completed. The first project resulted in development of a comprehensive cast light metal property database, an automotive application design guide, computerized predictive models, process monitoring sensors, and quality assurance methods. The second project, the durability of lightweight composite structures, produced durability-based design criteria documents, predictive models for creep deformation, and minimum test requirements and suggested test methods for establishing durability properties and characteristics of random glass-fiber composites for automotive structural composites. The durability project supported Focal Project II, a validation activity that demonstrates ALM program goals and reduces the lead time for bringing new technology into the marketplace. Focal projects concentrate on specific classes of materials and nonproprietary components and are done jointly by DOE and the Automotive Composites Consortium of U.S. Council for Automotive Research (USCAR). The third project developed a rapid tooling process that reduces tooling time, originally some 48-52 weeks, to less than 12 weeks by means of rapid generation of die-casting die inserts and development of generic holding blocks, suitable for use with large casting applications. This project was conducted by the United States Automotive Materials Partnership, another USCAR consortium

Investment Analysis: Peningkatan Performa Dan Effisiensi Dari Adopsi Cloud Engine Pada Industri Kreatif Berbasis Digital Visual Desain Yang Memiliki Kebutuhan Komputasi & Prosesing Tinggi

Industri kreatif (Creative Industries) merupakan salah satu sub-sektor baru dalam dunia ekonomi yang perkembangannya sangat pesat. Industri kreatif adalah industri yang mampu menyediakan produk dan layanan dengan nilai ekspresif dan fungsional. Perusahaan yang bergerak dalam industri kreatif sangat bergantung pada teknologi baru. Lebih dari 90% perusahaan yang bergerak dalam industri kreatif tersebut menggunakan teknologi baru sebagai infrastruktur utama penunjang proses aktifitas mereka baik hardware maupun software. Beberapa sektor dalam industri kreatif memiliki aktifitas yang membutuhkan hardware resource lebih tinggi dibandingkan dengan aktifitas kerja pada umumnya. Aktifitas berhubungan dengan proses mendesain visual, digitalisasi/virtualisasi dan kontennya seperti contoh arsitektur, animasi 3D, VR (Virtual Reality), AR (Augmented Reality), Gaming, dsb, memerlukan spesifikasi hardware yang mumpuni untuk dapat menghasilkan dan meningkatkan kualitas hasil akhir serta mendukung kinerja pengguna/pelaku industri kreatif tersebut. Kebutuhan tinggi akan infrastruktur pendukung industri kreatif seperti hardware terbatasi dengan tingginya cost untuk penggunaan infrastruktur tersebut. Dimulai dari pembelian awal, running, maintenance, replace, upgrade dsb. Menjawab masalah tersebut, cloud computing menawarkan salah satu bentuk gabungan antara infrastructure dan platform as service sebagai salah satu bentuk layanan untuk menangani kebutuhan hardware serta platform kerja, yang dalam penelitian ini disebut sebagai Cloud Engine. Penelitian ini melakukan analisis untuk membuktikan keuntungan penggunaan Cloud Engine apabila dibandingkan dengan perangkat workstation konvensional (infrastruktur umum), menganalisis perbandingan keuntungan investasi baik pada starting cost, biaya operasional, raw power performance, maintenance, dan kebutuhan daya antara workstation konvensional dan Cloud Engine dan selanjutnya efisiensi dan efektifitas dalam investasi dihitung menggunakan metode CBA (Cost-Benefit Analysis) untuk mendapatkan keuntungan/project dan rekomendasi terbaik dalam rangka investasi infrastruktur pendukung industri kreatif berbasis digital visual desain. ================================================================================================ The creative industry is one of the new sub-sectors in the world of economics whose development is very rapid currently. The creative industry is an industry that is able to provide products and services with expressive and functional values. Companies engaged in the creative industry rely heavily on new technology. More than 90% of companies which engaged in the creative industry use new technology as the main infrastructure to support their activity processes both hardware and software. Some sectors in the creative industry have activities that require higher hardware resources compared to work activities in general. Activities related to the process of visual design, digitalization/virtualization and its content such as architecture, 3D animation, VR (Virtual Reality), AR (Augmented Reality), Gaming, etc., require a high hardware specification to produce and improve the qualities of the end products and support the performance of users/creative industry performer. The high demand for creative industry supporting infrastructure such as hardware is limited by the immense cost of infrastructure use. Starting from the initial purchase, running, maintenance, replace, upgrade, etc. Answering this problem, cloud computing offers one of the combined forms of infrastructure as service and platforms as service to handle hardware and work platform needs, which in this study are referred to as Cloud Engines. This study analyzes to proven the advantages of the Cloud Engine use, when compared to conventional workstation devices, analyzing the comparison of investment benefits both in the starting cost, operational costs, raw power performance, maintenance, and power requirements between conventional workstations and Cloud Engines, subsequently efficiency and effectiveness in investment is calculated using the CBA (Cost-Benefit Analysis) method to get the best benefits/projects and recommendations in order seek the best infrastructure investment for supporting the creative industries based on digital visual design