Center for Advanced Vehicle Design and Simulation

Designing for the future with strong partnerships, innovation, and research

The Center for Advanced Vehicle Design and Simulation (CAViDS) provides a platform for collaboration between industry and academia to develop breakthrough technical solutions that can have deep economic, social and environmental impact, while training the next generation of U.S. engineers.

Designing for the future with strong partnerships, innovation, and research.

About the center

As the vehicle industry continues to evolve, it is crucial for the state of Michigan to maintain its leading automotive presence through sustained research and development, workforce education and training. CAViDS helps fill this role through its applied research and technologies that directly impact product design, manufacturing, reliability and profitability.

CAViDS provides complete, multi-disciplinary solutions to challenging engineering problems with the extensive resources of WMU's College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Our researchers are prepared to collaboratively identify solutions that drive your organization's success.

Dr. Claudia Fajardo-Hansford

  • WMU is committed to pursuing applied, high-impact R&D projects by leveraging academia-industry collaboration. Our center provides the catalyst for these partnerships.

    Dr. Claudia Fajardo, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and director of CAViDS

Floyd Hall

View of Floyd Hall in winter against bright blue sky

Access the resources you need

Our extensive resources and renown researchers are located in Floyd Hall on WMU's Parkview Campus

Benefits of partnering with CAViDS

  • Resource leveraging: Annual membership enables participation in multiple core projects and monthly interaction with industry members
  • Workforce pipeline development: Direct involvement of engineering students under expert faculty supervision
  • Expertise: Access to laboratories, facilities, and equipment
  • Flexibility: Two-tier membership may be adjusted on an annual basis (e.g., to accommodate exploratory projects)

CAViDS Consortium

CAViDS pursues research, engages students and faculty, and interacts with external partners.  The CAViDS consortium consists of industrial companies, national labs, and foundations for the purposes of technology advancement, technology transfer, and education.

The investment in CAViDS from the government, foundations, and industry partners is used to develop basic simulation tools and customize the developed technologies to industry needs. CAViDS serves as a keystone for meeting ground vehicle industry needs through the development of new technologies and the conversion of the existing focused simulation technologies for dual use.  Needs identified by the industry partners are addressed by CAViDS’ core competence with in-house technology creation and innovative use of commercial software.

Industry partners