Humanetics


Humanetics Innovative Solutions is the largest manufacturer of the crash test dummy, as measured by market share. Headquartered in Michigan, the company is owned by Bridgepoint Capital, a private equity firm.

Products

Humanetics makes a variety of dummies, ranging from newborn infants and adults to the obese and the elderly. The dummy product line-up includes a range of frontal, side and rear impact and child crash test dummies. Humanetics also offers finite element virtual dummy models representing a range of frontal, side and rear impact dummies, as well as child, aerospace and military dummies, dummy headforms and pedestrian leg forms. Through its acquisition of DSD Testing, Humanetics added to its product portfolio test equipment used to evaluate advanced driver assistance systems and autonomous vehicles including an Ultra Flat Overrunable robot platform and a Driving Robot. Other products include a Dummy Positioning System, a pre- and post-measurement system of crash vehicles called ProCam, test fixtures to certify dummies, ATD calibration software, and a range of instrumentation including load cells, accelerometers, potentiometers and IR-TRACCs.
Its most biofidelic model is THOR, or Test device for Human Occupant Restraint. Humanetics developed THOR with funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The dummy has 57 sensors that analyze 140 factors such as chest compression, sternum acceleration, and skull shifting. Humanetics produces a THOR-50M representing a 50th percentile adult male, a THOR-5F representing a 5th percentile female, and a THOR-AV 50M and THOR-AV 5F for autonomous vehicle safety testing.
As of 2018, Humanetics has begun 3D printing dummies. This process is cheaper and faster than the traditional steel-based one, and produces parts that are more durable.

Ownership

Since 2018, Humanetics has been owned by Bridgepoint Capital, a private equity firm. Previous owners included Golden Gate Capital and Wynnchurch Capital.

Acquisitions

Humanetics has acquired various companies. Here are a few of the most notable acquisitions:
Humanetics has two plants in the United States: one at its headquarters in Farmington Hills, Michigan, where it focuses on instrumentation, and another in Huron, Ohio. The company also has facilities in: The Netherlands; Heidelberg, Germany; Graz and Linz, Austria; Shanghai, China; Bangalore, India; and Tokyo and Nagoya, Japan.

The Advanced Driving System Consortium

In 2019, several automakers and suppliers formed the Advanced Driving Systems Consortium. Founding companies include BMW, Jaguar Land Rover, Zoox, Faurecia, Autoliv, and Humanetics. The group’s goal is to develop seating standards that the NHTSA can use for autonomous vehicles.

Leadership

Humanetics is led by Christopher O’Connor, the company’s president and chief executive. O’Connor has been profiled by, and written about industry issues for, publications such as Automotive Engineering, Automotive Industries, and WardsAuto. In 2018, Ernst & Young named him a finalist for Entrepreneur of the Year in the category of distribution and manufacturing.