A cooperation agreement between MAN Truck & Bus and ABB E-mobility has been signed for the two companies to work together in developmental stages of new products.
Thomas Nickels, senior vice president of engineering at MAN, said: "Cooperation in the area of research and development is rather rare in our industry. Together with ABB E-mobility, we are striving for a trusting, binding and transparent partnership. We are already starting with the development of products and standards and are focussing on the special requirements of the commercial vehicle industry."
This partnership is set to be particularly important for the future of MAN’s electric vehicles and megawatt charging systems (MCS). Nickels continued: "At MCS, we are working with players from the entire sector to enable charging capacities in the megawatt range in the future and thus sustainable and economical long-distance heavy goods and passenger transport. By cooperating with ABB E-mobility, we can tackle the challenges of the new technology at an early stage and drive standardisation forward more quickly."
These developments will deal with new ways of transmitting signals for megawatt charging using Ethernet communication, something which has not been seen before in electromobility. This agreement will enable the two companies to work together for at least three years to conduct software and interoperability tests to establish the reliability of new products and technologies.
Floris van de Klashorst, senior vice president products and hardware platforms at ABB E-mobility, said: "High charging performance, reliable technology and customer confidence - these are the prerequisites for the success of electromobility in heavy goods and long-distance passenger transport. By working together with MAN right from the early product phase, we can respond even better to the needs of our customers. By 2025, we want to bring a product to the market that meets the requirements of logistics.
"The market needs an ecosystem that interlocks and works reliably. That's why we want to jointly develop a concept for the interaction of MCS and CCS that addresses issues such as space, energy supply and grid expansion. MAN's extensive expertise helps us to develop customer-oriented solutions - both for use in the depot and on the track."
Beyond the use for commercial vehicles, van de Klashorst, continued: "MCS will also be used in future in the travel sector, for example for motorhomes and coaches. This will bring additional challenges and a change in user behaviour."
