With Thermo King’s expertise in electrifying transport refrigeration, the partners aim to achieve reduced fuel consumption in diesel truck-trailers and increased range in electric combinations.

Customers (workshops and fleet operators) in Continental Europe can now purchase more than 300 branded truck parts, covering over 80 percent of common wear parts on trucks, through the Krone website.

Investment is for initiatives in two primary locations: The Randon branded semi-trailer and railway wagon assembly plant in Caxias do Sul and the Motion Control manufacturing facility, also in Caxais do Sul, which operates under the Frasle Mobility brand name.

Having announced its ‘E-Mobility kit’ in 2023 – a portfolio of advanced electric drives, auxiliary components and complete systems for medium and heavy-duty commercial vehicles – ZF says it plans to ramp up production from 2025 to meet demand.

The investment will fund the further development of Range Energy’s electric axle technology for semi-trailers, which can reduce fuel consumption in a diesel tractor-trailer combo or energy consumption in a fully-electric one.

The company says it will focus on commercialising its ‘Solar Bus Kit’, which (despite the name) is intended for trucks and trailers as well as buses.

Recently, Librelato opened five new units in five key states of Minas Gerais, Paraná, Pernambuco, Rio Grande do Sul and Tocantins. Since 2018, when the first unit was created, Libreparts stores have grown consistently year after year.

Lumax is anticipating a surge in demand for its products, as several OEMs, it says, are focusing heavily on the transition to electric vehicles.

Tecnokar trailers used to be sold exclusively in France through Legras until its merger with Benalu last year.

Opened in September 2013, this facility has been servicing local demand and has been supplying 31 different countries in Europe, the Middle and Far East, Africa and South America for over a decade. Krone says that 63 per cent of the trailers produced at this factory are for export.

The Randon Technological Centre occupies an area of more than 90 hectares in Farroupilha, in the south of Brazil. With 15 kilometres of test field, more than 20 types of tracks and a 2,200 m² building with laboratories, engineering, and administration offices.

At Zaragoza, Schmitz will build ‘S.CS’ curtainsiders, ‘S.KO’ dry freight semi-trailers, and reefers for customers primarily in Spain, Portugal, France, and North Africa.