Save the weight

For efficiency improvements, the desire to reduce the mass of vehicle subsystems is far greater than the ability. As a result, off-highway suppliers must seek innovation and technological advances through other means.

Given their sheer size and resulting weight, it is easy to see why losing a few pounds from a combine, dump truck, or track loader would not really help the overall mass of the vehicle. Given this conundrum, while a lightweight, compact off-highway vehicle may be the dream, in reality, the road to efficiency gains is not as straightforward.

“Building an axle is not like a recipe,” said Michele Lazzaro, Director at Dromos, the Italian manufacturer of transmissions, drive axles, and suspensions for numerous industrial markets. “Axles or associated components need to be developed harmonically, not through a modular concept. You need an optimized solution, and the key to optimizing the weight is making the best use of the material possible. This means that when you look at the lightest possible solution, it probably won't work for mass-production products.”