The KULI software enables engineers to design and optimise vehicle cooling and air conditioning systems for both traditional and alternative powertrains. By simulating energy flows (mechanical, electrical, and thermal) KULI ensures that vehicle components operate within their ideal temperature ranges across various operating conditions, enhancing system performance and reliability.

Initially, the facility will have a production capacity of 50,000 packs a year; MAN is hoping to expand this to 100,000 by 2030.

The company says its facility in Fullerton, California is already set up to produce a “high volume” of batteries with “standard” chemistry (likely LFP) on one line and low volumes of battery packs for research and development purposes on two other lines.

Tenneco claims that hydrogen combustion technology is experiencing “an unprecedented surge” of interest from certain “hard-to-abate” sectors of the transport market, including agriculture, construction, and heavy-duty trucking.

At IAA Transportation 2024, held between 17-22 September in Hanover, Germany, Brazilian trailer and components firm Randoncorp presented products from its auto parts brands, including wheel-end components from Castertech, brake systems from Master Freios (a joint venture with Cummins), and axles, suspensions, and e-mobility products from Suspensys. However, the group’s most interesting showcase was invisible to the naked eye. In its axle products lay hidden a secret ingredient measurable only on the nanoscale: a niobium compound, which has the power to augment the mechanical properties of steel while considerably reducing its weight. It also improves the performance of other materials, enabling them to achieve their full potential.

The new ‘HV (i.e., high voltage) Test & Validation Laboratory’ is already accredited to national and international standards for testing electric vehicles with architectures rated at 800 volts.

In July, American powertrain manufacturer, Cummins Inc, opened a new test facility at its engine plant in Darlington in the northeast of England, with the attendance of T&BB and other members of the trade press. The company has carried out engine testing at Darlington for many years, but the new facility represents a definitive change in approach to product development and evaluation. While the older test cells are solely designed to assess engines, the new facility can accommodate an entire truck or bus for whole vehicle testing. Moreover, the building which houses the new facility is specifically made to safely test gas and hydrogen combustion vehicles.

The aim of the new project partnership will be to further develop air adsorption in fuel cell humidification.

The EV & Future Mobility Park is being created on 300 acres in Shoolagiri, Krishnagiri District.

The slower-than-expected transition to electric vehicles is one of the main factors behind the decision to restructure the business, though Northvolt’s CEO and co-founder, Peter Carlsson, said, “there remains no question that the global transition towards electrification — and the long-term outlook for cell manufacturers, including Northvolt — is strong”.

The proof-of-concept vehicle was assembled, deployed and tested at the MIRA Technology Park in Nuneaton, UK. The prototype is expected to be tested by operators and OEMs during the rest of 2024.

The new R&D facility is located in Pune, Maharashtra, near a major production site where SAF-Holland manufactures trailer axles and suspensions under the ‘York’ brand.