My highlights of the IAA 2018 commercial vehicle trade fair

BYD or Build your Dream, Volvo Trucks own 'Vera', eActros and ViaVan, a 'Volks-Bike' from Hanover and a lot of smart technology such as LiDAR systems - these are some of the highlights of the IAA 2018 - the largest commercial vehicle trade fair in the world.

As was almost to be expected, the fair focused on the next-gen mobility topics: Connectivity, e-mobility and autonomous driving. But I myself was surprised by the intensity of these 'impacts' in Hanover. There was hardly a stand at this IAA 2018 that did not host one of the three themes. Here my conclusion of the last days:

The economic importance of commercial vehicles

Commercial vehicles are the drivers of our production processes. They handle the distribution of consumer goods and today our purchases to our doorstep are made by new logistical vehicles. Commercial vehicles play a central role in freight transport and passenger transport. And in Germany alone, the commercial vehicle industry employs around 180,000 people.

The success of e-mobility at this IAA is driven by customer requirements. The demand for electric transporters and vans, buses and trucks is growing internationally. After all, those responsible in local authorities and cities around the world are driven by the desire to transport goods and people in their urban centers without local emissions. Gone are the days of manufacturers' studies and concepts. At this IAA I saw electric vehicles on almost every stand. From the smallest electric scooter to the big electric truck.

Transforming transportation everywhere

MAN Trucks had previously been accused of doing too little in the way of electrification. In Hanover, however, the electric transporter eTGE based on the VW Crafter and a prototype of the city bus Lion's City E were shown. Sister company Scania presented the electric city bus Citywide and a new plug-in hybrid truck in the same hall.

The Swabian colleagues from Daimler/Mercedes-Benz went a few steps further. The FUSO eCanter, eVito and eSprinter are now available for the last mile, all with electric drive and full of connectivity features. A real eye-catcher is the Vision URBANETIC, an autonomous vehicle with a uniform driving platform and swap bodies for transporting goods or passengers. The new Mercedes-Benz Actros as a world premiere, the fully electrically driven eActros, the Actros NGT with gas drive are for me the stars among the big trucks at the fair.

Read more about my findings at this year's IAA here:

Here is some background info on the Daimler Proterra Deal.

The Cargo E-Bike powered by Bosch displayed on the IAA 2018.