Our press visit to BorgWarner’s cutting-edge Gigafactory in Darmstadt, Germany revealed a company that is rapidly accelerating toward the future by betting big on electrification!

Kontrolmatik has agreed to deliver 2 GWh of cells in 2026 and 5 GWh in 2027 to ONE, which will assemble them in battery modules and packs in Michigan.

Following shareholder approval, Plus will enter into a business combination that will generate up to USD300m in gross proceeds while also giving it access to the public financial market.

Volvo’s new ‘Safety Zones’ feature, available through its ‘Volvo Connect’ digital services, allows operators to “geofence” certain locations, such as a port or a logistics centre, and assign specific speed limits (20 km/h and above).

These tyres feature a new tread design which reduces rolling resistance and noise and improves traction, offering robust performance in the most demanding conditions while realising fuel savings, according to Michelin.

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.

Production under these contracts is slated to continue through the end of 2029, marking a significant long-term commitment to emissions reduction.

This development is particularly significant for the commercial vehicle (CV) sector, where affordable green hydrogen could accelerate the adoption of hydrogen-powered vehicles, especially in long-haul transport.

With the combined effect of these aerodynamic improvements, Volvo’s FH Aero model can reduce fuel consumption by up to 7% versus an unimproved FH model.

It is less than a year since German automotive components giant Schaeffler merged with Vitesco Technologies Group to form a single “motion technology company”. Retaining the Schaeffler name, the new company is now in the process of combining the two product lines of Schaeffler and Vitesco together under a single brand. At the company’s stand at the Advanced Clean Transportation Expo – held between 28 April and 1 May in Anaheim, California – the two companies’ portfolios were nearly indistinguishable. It marked the first time that the newly-merged company presented itself as a supplier of comprehensive system solutions to the North American commercial vehicle market.

This accreditation means the bus can operate “on a planned route without a driver in the cab,” significantly expanding Karsan’s autonomous e-bus operations beyond existing deployments in Italy,  Switzerland and Finland.

This initiative underscores Bosch's commitment to fostering technological innovation, particularly in areas such as energy efficiency, artificial intelligence (AI), automation, climate technologies, and healthcare systems.