How Solis began: a professor's idea and ten students
Cluj-Napoca, Team interview before BWSC 2025
Read the original article E fain la Cluj, in Romanian
E fain la Cluj publishes an interview with the Solis team, a student project coordinated by professors of UTCN's Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Robotics and Production Management. At the time the team was preparing for the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge 2025 and its 3,000 km route through the Australian desert.
“It took six years to find ten students to take part in building the first vehicle, Solis EV1, which was completed after 3 years of work.”
The Solis team, in the interview with E fain la Cluj
The team says the story began with a dream of Professor Ștefan Breban, inspired by his academic years in France (2005 to 2008): a solar vehicle able to race internationally. The first ideas came in 2012, and in 2018 the project became real, with a team of students working under professors from the two faculties.
Finding people was hard at first. It took six years to gather ten students willing to build the first vehicle, Solis EV1, which took three years of work. Built between 2018 and 2021 with limited resources, EV1 weighed 420 kg and had two integrated electric motors, 6 square metres of solar panels, a 3 kWh battery and a carbon-fibre body.
The team sets out three aims: helping students grow professionally by linking theory and practice, promoting sustainability and green technology, and representing Romania at competitions such as the World Solar Challenge. Recruiting has become easier as results came, the team says, and in the past year selection was stricter because so many students wanted to join.
Summary written by the Solis team from the article published by E fain la Cluj on 3 February 2025. The original: “Solis: Povestea unei echipe românești de la UT Cluj care duce inovația solară pe scena internațională. - E fain la Cluj!”
