Aptera and Composite Materials

Any start-up composite material company is likely having a hard time finding funding right now. As the federal government seems to be the best source for early seed money, electric car companies such as Fisker, Tesla, and Aptera are all waiting and hoping for loans from the Department of Energy.

Meanwhile, a company like Aptera, who's production is on hold until additional funding rolls through, is in a tough situation as they need to remain ready for production, but need to conserve cash. In a recent Wired Article, two of the original Aptera founders have been let go in addition to other Aptera employees.

The article also states that they are redesigning some of the features. Currently, the windows do not roll down, and if you want to go through a drive through or talk to a friend outside, you must open the door. So to correct this, they are changing the design. Like most molded composite products, Apteria likely will have to redesign the door structure, build new molds, and manufacture/test new composite panels.

Let us all hope success for Aptera, automotive companies utilizing composites, and all other start-ups who work with composite materials.

Photo Credit: Kevin Marks via flicker