US company, Meritor, has announced a strategic investment in an electrification technology innovator for large commercial vehicles, Transpower.
“This investment will allow us to advance the development of transformative electrification technologies for the commercial vehicle industry,” said Meritor CEO and President, Jay Craig.
“Our collaboration with TransPower has proved successful in the early phase of our electrification strategy and we believe it will continue to create a winning formula as we look ahead to low-volume production in the future,” he said.
Meritor’s investment will fund continued improvements in the development of controls for its eAxle and commercialisation of electric vehicle system solutions from both companies. Through various programs with major OEMs, almost 100 vehicles are planned to be equipped with Meritor and TransPower electrification systems between 2019 and 2020.
Meritor’s eCarrier platform integrates an electric motor into the axle, freeing up space for batteries and other components. This flexible design is the foundation for various drivetrain configurations, including full electric, hybrid, and single or tandem axles with various options based on product application for vehicle Classes 5 through 8.
California-based TransPower supplies integrated drive systems, full electric truck solutions and energy-storage subsystems to major manufacturers of trucks, school buses, refuse vehicles and terminal tractors. The company has been focused exclusively on developing electrical drive solutions for more than seven years.
Last month, Meritor confirmed a senior appointment.