Equitus, a London headquartered company, has delivered a design validation of battery racks for Magtec. The scope of work for the UK’s largest manufacturer of electric and range-extended vehicle drive systems included Finite Element Analysis (FEA).
Equitus is one of a small selection of companies with high level technical proficiency capabilities in FEA, a computerised method for predicting how a product reacts to real-world forces, vibration, heat, fluid flow and other physical effects.
The collaborative project has ensured that Magtec’s racks – which when loaded with batteries weighing a combined 1260 kgs subject them to forces six times that of earth’s gravity – are safe while also providing assurance to electric truck manufacturers. Design validation included alignment with five United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).
It comes as what was Equitus Engineering repositions its offer to become Equitus World; now the parent of Equitus Engineering, Equitus Design and Equitus Innovations.
The transition to a new business model – with all four now having their own domains – follows a period of growth for Equitus, which also has bases in Manchester, UK, and Bangalore, India,
“Working in such a progressive and collaborative way with Magtec has been a great pleasure. Magtec approached Equitus to do some design validation of their battery racks, we assessed the design and offered Magtec recommendations that were accepted,” said Equitus founder Raam Shankar.
“The wide spectrum of our capabilities and experience in FEA means that we select the right analysis approach whether that is problem physics, application, idealisation (shells, beams, solids) contact setup and modelling, and a range of static and dynamic loading conditions.
“For Magtec, the weight being carried over the frames was two batteries of 230 kgs each and four batteries weighing 200 kgs. Our capabilities, coupled with Magtec’s commitment to safety, provided validation and assurance in design to electric truck manufacturers. In the year of COP 26 being held in Glasgow, we feel that UK companies collaborating on UN SDGs is a positive thing.”
Raam, TEDx Alumni, added that Equitus is now entering the most exciting phase in its six-year history. Equitus has worked with clients including Babcock, European Space Agency, Pall Corporation, Sellafield, STFC, Centrax Gas Turbines, AMOT Corporation, and Kawasaki.
Magtec was formed in 1992 and has been at the vanguard of the very latest clean technology; designing and manufacturing electric drivetrain solutions to power or repower commercial vehicles and trucks. The company currently has hundreds of drive systems operating in trucks around the globe and is based in the heart of Sheffield’s manufacturing hub.
