MAN engines has made its choice: technological neutrality

For those who can boast the genesis of the Diesel cycle engine, and this is the way MAN Engines is, it is perhaps not so easy to make a clear choice on how to play the energy transition. Yet MAN Engines has done so. A choice that is called technological neutrality, with an awareness of the key role that Diesel engines will play in industrial applications in the coming future..

MAN Engines to serve the market

Electrification, hydrogen, ICE and…? With the market launch of the MAN eTruck, electric mobility is picking up speed in the commercial vehicles of MAN Truck & Bus. At the same time, the MAN Engines business unit continues to rely on combustion engines – for use in agricultural machinery, ships or for power generation, for example. “Today and in the long term, we see the coexistence of a wide variety of technologies among our heterogeneous customer groups. Despite advances in battery technology, there will be applications where internal combustion engines are indispensable, as infrastructure, machine design or usage profiles do not allow for alternatives. For these customers, we will continue to be the usual reliable partner and supplier for state-of-the-art drive technologies,” says Werner Kübler, Head of Engineering at MAN Engines.

What are the benefits for MAN Engines of being a member of a ‘multitasking’ group?

These achievements include in-line four and six-cylinder engines as well as V8 and V12 engines from 5 to 30 liters of displacement. These are specially designed for applications in power generation, agricultural and railway technology as well as maritime applications. In addition, MAN Engines has added the MAN BatteryPack to its portfolio, which is marketed for both mobile machines and stationary applications. MAN Engines will also be presenting innovations and updates to its off-road product portfolio at Agritechnica, which the company has been participating in for many years, taking place in November. In addition, the MAN Engines business unit is scheduled to start series production of the MAN Smart HYBRID Experience, a hybrid system for marine applications that represents an important step towards modern drive technologies.

What is meant by coming to terms with reality

“The engine portfolio that is currently available to us is more modern and future-oriented than ever. If you look at the long life cycles of the products in our business, we are thus safeguarding the needs of all current and future customer groups in the long term,” says Reiner Roessner, Head of Sales. “Ongoing technical development and adaptation to the latest technological possibilities are a major factor in enabling us to further develop existing engine platforms in order to always meet the latest requirements and expectations of the industry,” adds Werner Kübler, Head of Engineering.

Moving forward to electromobility

In addition to the production of engines for the Group’s own commercial vehicles as well as for the MAN Engines business unit, the MAN Nuremberg site has also been systematically expanded in the direction of electromobility in recent years. “But this also means that we will need very efficient combustion engines for a long time to come on the path to the transformation to electric mobility,” says MAN CEO Alexander Vlaskamp. With the current investments in the new battery production, battery development and the production of the new CBE Group engine, the site is well positioned for all applications in the long term. In addition to these investments amounting to almost 500 million euros, the focus will also be on research opportunities for alternative fuels as well as the plant overhaul of MAN engines at the site. “After several years of transformation, we are really well equipped to meet today’s needs as well as the needs of the future for all our customer groups,” says Matthias Meindl, Head of Component Production at MAN Truck and Bus.