ISSUE 030 March/April 2025 In conversation with Tony Fong l Bobcat T7X electric compact truck loader dossier l Cybersecurity focus l Motor testing insight l Fellten’s Charge Qube l HIL testing insight l Battery leak testing focus

30 Externally, that lack of sound also makes working in urban environments and close quarters, backyards or even indoors more feasible. The addition of blue flashing lights on the side of the machine – one of the only noticeable external differences between this and the diesel version – are an indication that it is in operation. The machine weighs around 450 kg more than the diesel version, but this would be a disadvantage in a roadgoing EV. It is actually another benefit here because there is plenty of power to move it along, and when it comes to lifting, the added weight adds a bigger counterbalance to help it lift and manoeuvre even heavier items. There is a positive effect in cold weather, too, particularly when the mercury drops well below zero. In electric cars, cold temperatures can dramatically diminish range, but in this construction machine the plentiful battery capacity onboard and the way the power is used actually makes it function better in cold weather than its diesel counterpart. At Bobcat’s North American headquarters in North Dakota, where on the day of this interview temperatures had dipped to -20 C, the effects of cold start on a diesel engine are more apparent than ever. However, with the electric machine, the team has never once had an issue getting it into action. “There’s a likelihood at really low temperatures that I go out and grab a diesel machine and it may not start,” says Pfaff. “In this, we don’t have to worry about the state of the fuel in the system, the filter, the starter battery – you just get into the machine and it turns on. And because we have a resistive element heater, we have instant heat. “Some electrics struggle in cold weather, but our machines don’t because of the nature of the way the battery is used. When we’re continually drawing at least 40 kW of power, the battery reaches a temperature that takes a very long time to cool down. Even if it has been really cold for several days, the batteries will tend to stay within their operating temperature.” Into the future The T7X is truly pioneering in its industry, and while some smaller manufacturers are known to be working on, or have displayed or produced wheeled designs, the team knows of no other major competitor that has launched an electric track loader like this machine with such innovative use of all-electric drive and actuation. The company’s website describes the machine as having ‘jaw-dropping’ torque, and Honeyman acknowledges: “Not one customer that has driven this would come back to us due to power March/April 2025 | E-Mobility Engineering Dossier | Bobcat T7X electric compact track loader Blue activation lights are the only indication that the near-silent vehicle is in operation

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjI2Mzk4