Distinguished leaders will help guide energy storage research programmes for automotive and other sectors
Two new members, Esther Hills and Hanno Kirner, have joined the Faraday Institution’s board of trustees, further strengthening the board’s strategic and engineering expertise in automotive, aerospace, energy and other sectors.
As the UK’s flagship organisation for electrochemical energy storage research, skills development, market analysis and early-stage commercialisation, the Faraday Institution brings together research scientists and industry partners to work on large projects with commercial potential that will reduce battery cost, weight, and volume; improve performance and reliability; and develop whole-life strategies including recycling and reuse.
The board of trustees, with the newly appointed trustees, bring multifaceted perspectives and experiences from academia, industry, and public service to the role of advising the Faraday Institution.
Announcing the new appointments, board chair Professor Peter B. Littlewood said: “Effective and rapid energy storage research is a vital component of the drive to a low carbon economy. Our board of trustees provides valuable guidance for the Faraday Institution as it determines how our battery research can most effectively deliver impact to the UK’s automotive and other industries and to enable performance improvements to drivers of future electric vehicles. We are delighted to welcome to the board two new distinguished and widely respected individuals, who, through their wealth of strategic and engineering leadership experience will help us steer our programmes to continue to make a difference through discovery and innovation.
“Johnny Green and Jeff Chamberlain have rotated off the Board of Trustees and I thank them both for their four years of valuable service as two of our inaugural trustees.”
Faraday Institution Chief Executive Professor Pam Thomas said: “In Esther Hills and Hanno Kirner the board has gained two individuals that share our mission and values and whose expertise in the automotive industry complement the skills set of the existing members. We look forward to working collaboratively with them as further develop the Faraday Institution’s role to help meet the UK’s needs as it moves towards Net Zero.”
Introducing the new board members:
Esther Hills
Dr Esther Hills is the Product & Engineering Director at Aggreko. She is responsible for leading product development of the power generation, battery storage and temperature control products within Aggreko’s Rental Solutions. She has worked in the automotive industry for over 25 years, having started her career at Ricardo Consulting Engineers as part of their graduate scheme. She holds a master’s degree in Engineering Acoustics and Vibration, and a PhD in Structural Dynamics both from the University of Southampton. Esther also sits on the board of the Institute of the Motor Industry as a Non-Executive director.
Hanno Kirner
Hanno was appointed to Executive Director, Tata Group Synergy Programmes in June 2021, to lead the Tata Group activities in exploring opportunities in the battery space. Since 2016 Hanno has been Executive Director, Corporate and Strategy as a member of the Jaguar Land Rover executive management board, where his direct responsibilities included leadership of Corporate Strategy, Product Strategy, Global Financial Services, IT, Royal & Diplomatic Affairs and the Special Operations division. He was previously Chief Financial Officer for the Land and Sea Division at Rolls Royce plc, Chief Financial Officer at Aston Martin Lagonda as well as Director of Finance and IT at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.
The full list of board members can be found here
Photos: Esther Hills, Hanno Kirner
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