At the recent
IAA Transportation exhibition, where it showed a number of developments, the ‘global mobility company
Mahle GmbH (it has sales of about 12.8 billion euros, 148 production locations, 11 R&D centres, and 72,373 employees) highlighted a new strategy that focused on the three strategy fields of electrification, thermal management, and components for efficient and clean internal combustion engines — plus ‘innovations for the rapid decarbonisation of the commercial vehicle sector’.
Arnd Franz, Mahle’s CEO (pictured), said: “We are committed to shaping a sustainable transportation sector with a view to strengthening the foundations for economic growth. Climate protection cannot be successful without the transportation sector. In view of an expanding global economy and population growth, road transport volumes are expected to grow by over 40% by 2030, compared with 2019.
“This will make commercial vehicles a key lever for carbon-neutral mobility. We are committed to shaping a sustainable transportation sector with a view to strengthening the foundations for economic growth.”
Mahle develops components and systems for battery-electric and fuel cell vehicles; the company is also making the internal combustion engine ‘fit for the use of hydrogen and other renewable fuels’. At IAA Transportation, Mahle gave a first showing of a complete system for a fuel cell truck with fuel cell peripherals, thermal management and a fully functional heavy-duty electric axle. Other developments included a high-performance, fuel-saving evaporative cooling system for fuel cell and electric vehicles as well as a ‘bionic fan’ that makes an electric truck considerably quieter at full load or during rapid charging.
The company says that all electrified trucks now available contain significant volumes of Mahle products, adding that the group is involved in all major development projects for fuel cell vehicles and hydrogen engines currently in progress, and that the group’s customers currently include more than 120 international commercial vehicle brands in the on-highway and off-highway segments. Today, the commercial vehicle sector accounts for about one-fifth of Mahle’s OEM business; it is also a share that is growing.