Designwerk Technologies AG has unveiled a new addition to its portfolio, the “Mega Charger,” a fast charging station in the form of a container designed for commercial vehicles.
Presented to around 80 industry experts at the company’s headquarters in Winterthur, Switzerland, the Mega Charger features two CCS Charging points, each with an output of 420 kilowatts, making a total power capacity of 840kWs. The container also houses a lithium-ion, second life NMC battery with a capacity of up to 2MWh to provide energy for the chargers.
The dimensions of the container are 8.6 x 2.55 x 3.0m, and Designwerk aims to deploy these charging systems to make electric commercial vehicles suitable for long distances without straining the power grid. The Mega Charger ensures that charging peaks do not burden the power grid and balances the fluctuating energy supply from renewable sources.
Galliker Transport AG, a Swiss transport and logistics company based in Altishofen, plans to commission a charging park based on Mega Charger technology in 2024. Sales of the Mega Charger have already commenced, with the charging power and battery capacity tailored to individual customer needs.
The technology behind the Mega Charger stems from an ongoing demonstration project named “Megawatt Battery Charging System for Heavy Duty Vehicles,” initiated in early 2022. This project, which involves collaboration with the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, the Bern University of Applied Sciences, the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, and other industry players, aims to build and test a battery-supported charging station with an output of 1.05MW per charging point.
The ultimate goal of this project is to enable electric trucks to be quickly charged within 45 minutes, with a battery energy content of 1.8MWh. The container, weighing 25 tonnes, connects to the power grid via CEE 125, and the Mega Charger System output can deliver up to 2,100kW of charging power, supporting the international Megawatt Charging System charging standard.
While vehicles with the Megawatt Charging System (MCS) standard are not currently on the roads, the company notes that infrastructure and charging standards are rapidly evolving, similar to the growth observed in the electric car market. The MCS is designed for a charging voltage of up to 1,250 volts and a current of 3,000 amps, theoretically supporting a charging output of up to 3.75 megawatts.
“A new kind of charging infrastructure is needed for long-distance trucks in particular, as well as for ships and aircraft. It is different from the infrastructure for electric cars and makes it possible to charge heavy commercial vehicles in a short time. This helps to ensure that zero-emission freight transport reaches every field of application,” explains Vivien Dettwiler, a member of the Designwerk management.
