Estrima Birò, the carsharing project

Abstract

This work is the natural continuation of my internship at Estrima Ltd., which took place during 2015, and which now continues as an employment contract. What interests me the most is to investigate a new company's project, which began with my arrival in Estrima and of which I was appointed as coordinator. Estrima Ltd. is a manufacturer of electric vehicles founded in 2009 as an offshoot of a bigger company that for 40 years has been producing cabins for construction equipment, the Brieda Ltd. The main product is the Estrima Biro, an electric quad innovative, as much for style as for technological solutions, so forefront that in the years 2011-2013 has attracted big investments from the Red Circle Investment (Diesel investment found). To increase sales and offer a new innovative service to customer, Estrima decided to develop a project of car sharing that interfaces with the concept of closed communities. The idea is to design a hardware and software that enable any Birò to be a ready to use car sharing kit. Allowing private owner to share the vehicle with family and friends and giving a powerful tool to rental car and accommodation facilities to start a car sharing business without particular knowledge or managerial burdens. This through a “simple” IoT device that control the usage of the vehicle and allows an easy sharing of it. This work is divided into 3 main parts; the first is a general reflection about the sharing economy and more in detail about the car sharing ecosystem. The second is my main goal, to tell the story of this project from its birth to the difficulties encountered, the choices made and their reasons. Finally, in the final part I will analyze the conclusions about the project, with a reflection on the business plan adopted including its performance.