ReDriveS

EMR4 integrated axle drive from our partner Schaeffler

Motivation and initial situation for the research project

The European automotive industry is on the path to a comprehensive circular economy:

With the planned End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV) Regulation, the European Union aims to promote the reuse of components and the high-quality recovery of materials from end-of-life vehicles. The focus is particularly on electric powertrain systems, which in the future are to be specifically removed prior to recycling and directed toward further use or reprocessing.

At the same time, demand is rising for strategic raw materials such as neodymium, dysprosium, copper, and aluminum, which are essential for electric drive systems. To reduce dependence on global supply chains and enhance Europe’s security of supply, closed-loop material cycles and the recovery of these raw materials are becoming increasingly important.

However, current recycling methods often rely on manual disassembly processes followed by shredding. This makes it difficult to recover components and materials to a high standard and to reuse them or recycle them as raw materials.

ReDriveS addresses this challenge with a systemic approach:

• Automated, non-destructive disassembly of electric axes, to the extent possible
• Recycling of strategic materials such as neodymium, dysprosium, aluminum, and copper
• Digital assessment and decision-making models that use digital twins to determine the optimal disposal path (reuse, remanufacturing, or recycling)

In this way, ReDriveS helps reduce dependence on imports of strategic raw materials, improve the carbon footprint of electric mobility, and make the German automotive industry’s value chain more resilient and sustainable.

Role of ARENA2036

ARENA2036 plays a central dual role in the ReDriveS project. As part of the work package “Collaborative Data Use in the Automotive Ecosystem,” ARENA2036 supports the design and implementation of the digital infrastructure for secure, standardized data exchange between OEMs, suppliers, recyclers, and research partners. In doing so, existing initiatives such as Catena-X and Gaia-X are integrated and further developed to enable the cross-cutting use of digital twins and data models along the value chain. At the same time, ARENA2036 is responsible for the communication, visibility, and knowledge transfer of the project results beyond the consortium—both to the professional community and to society at large.

In this way, it plays a key role in embedding the technologies, processes, and digital tools developed in ReDriveS within the business community, the scientific community, and the general public, and in actively shaping the transition to circular mobility.