A conventional diesel powertrain concentrates much of its cooling requirement around the engine, transmission, hydraulic system, and associated coolers. Hybrid and battery-electric machines introduce a different mix of heat sources – including batteries, electric motors, inverters, and other power electronics.

These components don’t necessarily operate within the same temperature ranges or require cooling at the same time. That makes thermal management increasingly complex.

Cooling demand is becoming more dynamic

As the number of components requiring temperature control increases, simply providing maximum airflow isn’t necessarily the most efficient approach.

Many conventional off-highway fans are mechanically or hydraulically driven, meaning fan operation is influenced by engine speed or the characteristics of the drive system rather than cooling demand alone.

An independently controlled electric fan changes that relationship. Fan speed can increase when more cooling is required and reduce when demand falls.

That matters because moving air requires power. Matching fan output more closely to cooling demand can reduce unnecessary energy consumption – whether that energy ultimately comes from diesel fuel or a battery.

A different approach to fan control

Multi-Wing’s DCmax™ range brings variable-speed electric cooling to off-highway applications powered by internal combustion engines, hybrid systems, fuel cells, and batteries.

In one 20-ton hybrid excavator application, replacing a hydraulically driven cooling fan with five DCmax electric axial fans reduced cooling-fan power consumption by 16%. As hybridisation and electrification change where heat is generated and when cooling is required, the ability to control airflow independently is becoming an increasingly useful tool in off-highway thermal management.

Inventive Air Designs works with customers to design and select cooling solutions for off-highway applications, combining Multi-Wing fan technology with application-specific airflow engineering.