New EUR 2 billion facility to drive Asia growth, improve tech access

Hübner is actively exploring opportunities to deploy its hydropneumatic suspension system in electric commercial vehicles, with ongoing discussions taking place with bus manufacturers to incorporate the technology into future vehicle platforms. Meanwhile, the company will jointly showcase a demonstrator truck with this new airless suspension system at the next IAA 2026.  

This strategic move underscores Valeo’s commitment to supporting India’s electric mobility transition.

Readers may recall that, two years ago, we published a feature on TCCI Manufacturing, explaining why the longstanding Midwest supplier of compressors had decided to invest in a new facility on its home turf in Decatur, Illinois. In that article, Richard and Kara Demirjian outlined their plan to open a 260,000-square-foot “Clean Energy Innovation Hub” comprised of three facilities: a plant dedicated to the production of compressors for electric vehicles; a whole-vehicle test centre; and an academy to train the next generation of EV technicians. The innovation hub was officially unveiled by the governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker, at the end of April 2025, and so Truck & Bus Builder used the Advanced Clean Transportation Expo to get an update on TCCI’s newest investment.

The agreement strengthens AEM’s footprint in Asia and coincides with a new trade agreement between the UK and India.

The technology uses renewable and recycled materials which exhibit “exceptional mechanical properties”, making the brake pads more reliable as well as more sustainable, according to Tenneco.

As the market continues to shift toward greener transportation, AEM’s rare-earth-free technology positions it as a distinctive player in the electrification of public transport.

This year’s edition of the Advanced Clean Transportation Expo featured a more balanced range of driveline technologies, from battery and fuel cell electric at one end of the scale to propane, natural gas, and hydrogen combustion at the other. However, decarbonising the internal combustion engine is not as simple as replacing diesel with a different fuel; the different combustion characteristics of natural gas and hydrogen require alterations be made to the engine so that it works optimally with the new fuel type. One company which has thought long and hard about how to make these necessary tweaks is Eaton Corp. Scott Adams, who is senior vice president of technology and global products for Eaton’s Mobility Group, guided Truck & Bus Builder through the company’s portfolio, showing cutting-edge prototypes as well as its established range of power management technologies.

At the plant inauguration, MAN announced that it would invest a further EUR150m to kickstart production of battery modules, i.e., assembled battery cells which are installed in the packs.

In the next several years, Siemens will establish a “Global AI Manufacturing Technologies Research and Development Center for Battery Production” which will initially focus on electric vehicle battery production.

The University of Manchester’s mechanical and aerospace engineering department is looking into refrigerated vehicles as the effect of the fridge unit on the overall vehicle aerodynamics is understudied.

The new test bench, installed in the company’s Ludwigsberg research and development facility, can measure the efficiency and lifetime of fuel cell components such as humidifiers.