Commercial vehicles play an important role in road transportation. We see highways filled with trucks, containers, tractor-trailers, and they are used in large numbers and contribute more to the air pollution caused as compared to other road users. Thus increasing global warming, and to reduce that we have improved our air-pollution standards by switching to BS6. This justifies why we skipped the BS5 stage. As the European market switched to Euro6 back in 2014. Now they have an aim to switch to Co2 neutral emissions by 2039.

After the Paris agreement, many Automotive Manufactures switched to cleaner engines and there was a massive growth in technological advancement. Many Auto Manufacturers have been aiming to switch to electric vehicles but range anxiety, heavy haul, charging stations are few major challenges that EV face today. Mercedes-Benz is one of the ‘industry first’ to showcase a fully electric truck back in 2016 at the IAA Hannover show. Mercedes-Benz has a history of more than 125 years in trucking and has been a major part of industry-first innovations. This truck went under extensive testing for more than 2 years since then, not only by the company but by the customers as well. Mercedes-Benz had given a few units of trucks to their customers for testing which replaced their fossil fuel trucks with an EV. By doing this there was a great chance for Mercedes to improve with inputs of company tests and customer tests.

On 30th June 2021, Mercedes-Benz launched their Industry-First Electric Truck called the E-Actros in the European Market. Based on Actros 2530 design this truck is purely based on electric power. Mercedes-Benz claims this to be the 1st series produced electric Vehicle. With converting the entire range of trucks into electric, the R&D department is currently working on a brand new Truck called E-Econic which will be launched later this year.

The E-Actros will be a perfect truck for silent areas where trucks are banned due to the loud Diesel powerhouse. The sound produced by the E-Actros is 60 dB which is the sound produced by 2 individuals while talking to each other how cool is that! Don’t worry they won’t be using Air horns as we use them here in India.

Safety Features:-

The E-Actros is a major example of a technology shift from the conventional fossil fuels but the story has few more surprises, E-Actros gets a plethora of Safety Features such as the Mirror Camera, Multimedia Cockpit, Brake Assist 5th Generation, Side Guard Assist, etc.

EV Powertrain:-

Since it is an EV the powertrain will be more interesting, the truck is powered by two integrated electrical Engines. When combined they produce about 330KW and if we try to juiced out each bit of battery cell the truck manages to produce a peak power of 400kW.

Battery & Range:-

We now know the power produced is tremendous and to deliver such power the battery pack should be powerful as well. The battery capacity is available in 3 or 4 packs which produce power from 315 up to 420kWh. While each battery pack can produce 105kWh. With one full charge e-Actros has a range of 400kms which are real numbers. Considering GVW(Gross Vehicle Weight), the total weight of the truck is 40tonnes. 

Charging Time:-

When we have such a decent range with a mass of 40 tonnes it is equally important to charge the truck, roughly it takes a little more than 60 mins to charge the battery from 20%-80% with approximately 160kW.

An integral component of a business ecosystem:-

 In order to assist transport companies along every step of their way into eMobility, Mercedes-Benz Trucks has embedded the eActros in an eco-system that also provides advice and services, as well as a range of digital solutions to increase capacity utilization of the vehicle and to optimize the total cost of ownership. For example, using a customer’s existing route plans, it is possible to establish a highly realistic and meaningful usage profile for electric trucks. This so-called E-consulting doesn’t just include electrification of the depot, but – if the customer desires – also covers questions concerning planning, applying for, and implementing everything to do with the charging infrastructure and connection to the electricity network. To this end, Mercedes-Benz Trucks has also established a strategic partnership with Siemens Smart Infrastructure, ENGIE, and EVBox Group. Plus, if required, Mercedes-Benz Trucks can additionally provide help with identifying any available public grants for infrastructure and vehicles. 

If desired by customers, Mercedes-Benz Trucks is available to help with all questions concerning planning, application, and implementation processes, thereby ensuring customers obtain tailor-made, turnkey charging infrastructure and connection to the electrical network. Specifically for this purpose, Mercedes-Benz Trucks has entered into a strategic partnership with Siemens Smart Infrastructure, ENGIE, and EVBox Group. If the customer opts to make use of their services, the partners will analyze their depots and establish suitable infrastructure or energy supplies on their behalf. They also look after maintenance and servicing of the charging infrastructure. Siemens Smart Infrastructure, ENGIE, and EVBox Group collaborate closely with Mercedes-Benz Trucks in all phases of the process.

Give this a read as well http://commercialvehicle.in/propelling-electric-cvs/