Rivian Automotive

Rivian Automotive
Industry Automotive
Headquarters Rockledge, Florida, USA
Key people
 RJ Scaringe (CEO), Jim Thomas (CFO)
Number of employees
 30
Website www.rivian.com

Rivian Automotive is an automaker based in Rockledge, Florida.

Company

The company's founder and CEO is RJ Scaringe, a graduate of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute[1] and Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sloan Automotive Laboratory.[2] Rivian is based in Rockledge, Florida, USA, and has around 30 employees,[3] as well as 20 more contract workers,[2] though it has plans to eventually employ as many as 1,200 people.[4]

Rivian was founded as Avera Motors, but in November 2010, Hyundai Motor Company filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming that the Avera name was too close to that of the Hyundai Azera.[5] As a result, the Rivian name, inspired by the Indian River, was adopted.[5] In September 2011, Scaringe was honored by being named Entrepreneur of the Year at the Florida Governor's 2011 Business Diversification Awards.[6] Later that year, Rivian partnered with local research university Florida Tech to form the Florida Center for Automotive Research, or FCAR. According to Florida Tech's announcement, the major goal of FCAR is to establish an automotive engineering program to create safer, more fuel-efficient vehicles while bringing new jobs to Florida's Space Coast through Rivian's partnership with Florida Tech.[7]

Products

Rivian's first car will be designed to focus on being both fuel efficient and enjoyable to drive.[8] The design will include rear-wheel-drive, mid-mounted gasoline engine and an aluminum frame to save weight.[8] Rivian claims that the design will result in good acceleration and handling, as well as fuel economy better than that of hybrid vehicles.[8] Road testing of a prototype vehicle reportedly began in 2011.[5] The company's first model, according to Scaringe, will cost in the mid-$20,000 range and have gas mileage of up to 60 miles per US gallon (3.9 L/100 km; 72 mpg-imp).[4] Rivian is also in development of a diesel-electric engine that should achieve an estimated 90 miles per US gallon (2.6 L/100 km; 110 mpg-imp) in the city and over 100 miles per US gallon (2.4 L/100 km; 120 mpg-imp) on the highway.[9] In a 2011 interview with The Florida High Tech Corridor, CEO RJ Scaringe stated the lofty fuel efficiency numbers will be achieved from reducing the vehicle's weight, while maintaining the highest safety standards.[10]

Most revealing picture to date of the prototype vehicle:

References

  1. ↑ "RJ Scaringe ’05 Creates "Green" Car Company". Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. 11 August 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Avera Motors of Rockledge becomes Rivian Automotiv". Florida Today. 10 March 2011. Archived from the original on 17 March 2011. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
  3. ↑ "How Goes the EV Race?". AutoWeek. 9 August 2011. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "End Of Shuttle Program Leaves Thousands Jobless". NPR. 11 July 2011. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Avera Motors changes name to Rivian Automotive, begins road tests". Autoblog. 15 March 2011. Archived from the original on 17 March 2011. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
  6. ↑ "Cocoa, Rockledge businesses win state honors". Florida Today. 15 September 2011. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  7. ↑ "Florida Tech Announces New Florida Center for Automotive Research". Florida Institute of Technology. 21 October 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "Avera Motors teases high-efficiency prototype". Autoblog. 21 October 2010. Archived from the original on 17 February 2011. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
  9. ↑ "Rivian Automotive - Waves of Change". Automoblog. 11 August 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
  10. ↑ "Rivian Automotive's Robert Joseph "R.J." Scaringe: Faces of Technology". YouTube. 29 December 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2012.