ABB Formula E drives social progress, encourages women in STEM

The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship returned to Mexico City this week for the sixth time for round three of Season 8. The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez circuit in Mexico City is the most elevated of the season, at 2,250m above sea level. It is also an extremely fast track, thanks to long straights coupled with a succession of tight corners in the Foro Sol stadium.

Theodor Swedjemark, ABB’s chief communication and sustainability officer, said: “ABB is continually driving progress in countries such as Mexico, to help create a more sustainable future as part of our Sustainability Strategy 2030. A key element of this strategy is social progress, through which we aim to create safe, fair and inclusive working environments and support community building. In support of this we are proud to be participating in the FIA Girls on Track workshops in Mexico, as part of our continued partnership with the program.”

The FIA Girls on Track event staged the at circuit offered girls ages 8 to 18 the opportunity to explore the different aspects of the motorsport industry through a set of activities and workshops. One of the workshops will be focused on ABB robotics, featuring two of the company’s collaborative robots – YuMi and GoFa.

Further supporting FIA Girls on Track, ABB is producing a video series throughout the season to highlight the women working in the Formula E paddock.

ABB began its operations in Mexico 75 years ago and now has around 4,500 employees in nine centers across production, engineering, service centers, research and development, in addition to a Global Business Center that serves Latin America from San Luis Potosí. 

Vincente Magaña, country managing director, ABB Mexico, added: “The return of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship to Mexico provides the perfect opportunity to showcase sustainable technology and raise awareness about the many ways in which we can help combat climate change. ABB has become a strategic partner for Mexico, providing technology to help Mexico make great advances in energy management and efficiency across the country’s industries with a number of high-profile projects.”

One such ABB project in Mexico is for a five-star resort in Mexico’s Riviera Maya. After a rigorous digitization process, the hotel has installed 64 of ABB’s M4M Network Analyzers with a range of additional smart power breakers and enclosure. The solution improved resort efficiency and reduced energy costs, with minimal guest disruption.

As part of ABB’s 2030 global sustainability strategy, the company is committed to achieving carbon neutrality across its own operations, and to engage with its suppliers to extend its impact in reducing emissions across the entire supply chain. ABB in Mexico is kicking off a pilot project that could contribute to these goals with savings of around 2 kt in CO2 emissions through the use of renewable energy in three (San Luis Potosí, Matamoros y Guadalupe) of the nine ABB facilities in the country.

Following the race in Mexico City, the Championship will return to Rome for rounds 4 and 5 on April 9/10.