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Meritor Inc. announced several new business awards that expand its role in vehicle electrification, including the medium-duty segment, and expand its global reach to offset the cyclical truck market in North America, its largest customer base.

As Meritor sells 70% of the rear axles in the North American truck market, primarily for Class 8s, which account for 75% of its sales, it is gearing up for another figure: $ 1.5 billion in new revenue from electrification by 2030; revenue for fiscal year 2021 was $ 3.8 billion.

It intends to become an ePowertrain supplier, and not just an axle manufacturer.

It’s here! Our 14Xe ePowertrain is in production and available now!

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The road to follow is blue! Learn more at https://t.co/I6nFkPc7vn pic.twitter.com/mtTMvxhknB

– Meritor (@Meritor) December 6, 2021

“We have three to four times the content opportunities with full engine and drivetrain integration into our ePowertrain,” Meritor CEO Chris Villavarayan said during the Virtual Strategy Day presentation. ‘undertaking on December 7.

The company based in Troy-Mich. predicts an extended global truck cycle through 2025 with a North American Class 8 backlog close to industry records, and this will benefit its core axle and brake business, providing cash flow for support its electrification efforts. On electrification, the company sees the shift “moving to Meritor’s real estate,” noting that 50% of its ePowertrain content comes from its legacy products, such as gears and brakes.

The company has announced that its 14Xe ePowertrain is available and will begin production in December. It is part of Meritor’s Blue Horizon advanced technology portfolio,

The 14Xe ePowertrain, produced at Meritor’s manufacturing facility in Asheville, NC, is based on Meritor’s proven 14X axle housing, to retain existing axle mounting hardware to facilitate the integration of the truck manufacturer. The modular design allows the interchangeability of key components including electric motors, transmissions, gears, brakes, wheel ends and housings to suit customer specifications. It can be tailored to meet various powertrain needs depending on vehicle application and duty cycle spanning Class 5-8 commercial vehicles, depending on the company.

“We are well positioned to capitalize on the growing adoption of electric vehicles, particularly in markets where we have many growth opportunities, such as mid-size vehicles, which will be the first to adopt on the basis of e-commerce and changing market dynamics, ”added Villavarayan. , noting that Meritor has a small share in this segment.

Battery costs remain high and the charging infrastructure needs to be built, he said. “The industry needs to drive innovation here for the total cost of operations to make sense. “

New wins mentioned on the call included:

• A supply agreement with Beijing Foton Daimler Automotive Co., Daimler Truck’s joint venture in China. Meritor will produce a customized version of tandem axles and single rear axles for Daimler’s heavy-duty tractors, which will be produced in Beijing by BFDA. Meritor axles produced under this agreement will be fitted to new Mercedes-Benz heavy-duty tractors specially manufactured for the Chinese market.
• Its integrated Blue Horizon 14Xe ePowertrain for Thomas Built Buses next-generation all-electric school bus. This is Meritor’s first electric vehicle production award with a Daimler Trucks North America brand. The planned agreement will run for five years and is expected to begin in January 2024.
• It will supply its Blue Horizon 14Xe ePowertrains to Hexagon Purus for a short-term development program with the intention of bringing the program into production. Meritor’s ePowertrain will be used in two different hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle applications in North America. These applications include a Class 8 dump truck and a yard transporter.

This announcement follows the partnership between Hexagon Purus and Meritor to integrate the 14Xe ePowertrain into Hexagon Purus Class 6-7 trucks and Class 8 (6×4) vehicles.

Going forward, some truck manufacturers will still be interested in vertically integrating electric trucks, said John Bennett, chief technology officer at Meritor.

“This is the space in which we are playing today with drive axles and we are successful mainly because we come up with better solutions,” he said. “We are focused on technical differentiation, be it efficiency, packaging, weight, automotive grade software and controls – by simply providing a better product than what they could potentially develop into. internal. “

Bennett noted that ePowertrains have up to 2.5 times the speeds of traditional axles, “up to 23 speeds.”

Meanwhile, the competitive landscape on the supplier side includes Dana Inc. and Borg Warner, whose CFO, Kevin Nowlan, most recently held the same role at Meritor.

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