A View from the Board

By Charlie Roberts
Director of Sales
TCCI Manufacturing

Policy and innovation are reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and propelling us toward a future of electrification in the transportation industry. Simply put, there is a widespread shift to electric, and prioritizing the support of your customers plays an important role on their path to zero emissions. With over 30 years’ experience in the A/C compressor industry, and as the Director of Sales at TCCI Manufacturing, I’ve had a front row seat to this changing landscape.

The commercial vehicle and specialty automotive markets play a significant role in emissions. With U.S. transportation accounting for 37% of CO2 emissions from end-use sectors in 2021, we must prioritize a more sustainable path forward to support the proliferating green economy. To do this, we need to be cognizant of the significant need for advancements in battery and climatic testing, infrastructure and the workforce needed to support this growing industry.

Although the North American automotive market has had a primary focus on 400V, the commercial vehicle and specialty markets require higher voltage and higher capacity, a requirement which has played a major role in our electric product portfolio strategy over the last four years. This need in the commercial vehicle industry led TCCI to develop the largest range of voltage and capacity electric compressors in the market. The high voltage, 850V electric compressor, the recent winner of the Best in Show “Case” Award at the MACS 2023 Annual Training Event and Trade Show, features capacities up to 29kw and is the first of its kind available to the commercial transport market.

Manufacturers of OE and aftermarket components, service tools and service parts need to look forward to the coming electrification and invest as TCCI has. This applies to all vehicle classes and is particularly important in the emerging electrified commercial vehicle markets. When developing new products, consider all parts of the thermal management process, including cabin comfort, battery temperature control and electronics efficiency, to take advantage of this emerging market. At TCCI, we have taken this step, developing new products to provide optimal cabin and battery cooling for commercial battery-operated vehicles and to help OEMs optimize their systems to deliver longer battery life and faster charging.

As the EV commercial transport market continues to grow with the rapid increase in available EV models, policy support and improving technical viability and economic competitiveness, we must aim to stay ahead of the curve. Customers’ evolving needs mean unique solutions and products—one size does not fit all when it comes to electric compressors and other electrified thermal management products. Your customers rely on you and your electrification team to help guide them to the specific needs of their application. This has certainly been a learning curve for everyone in the industry.

There is much work still to be done as the U.S. shifts to electric, but we are catching up and catching up quickly, with local and national leaders who understand and are willing to invest in electrification and the long-term benefit of manufacturing growth that focuses on infrastructure, research and workforce development. I’ve been around for some very significant changes in this ever-evolving industry, but I’ve never been quite so optimistic for the future of manufacturing in America.

Read the article from MACS ACTION magazine here: https://macsmobileairclimate.org/

About Charlie Roberts

Charlie Roberts, Director of Sales at TCCI Manufacturing, has nearly 30 years’ experience in the HVAC mobile industry and has been essential to the launch of over twenty new products in the industry, including the electric compressor. Roberts has served on the MACS Board of Directors for six years where he has been a leader in their re-branding efforts and technological advancements.

About TCCI Manufacturing

At TCCI, we focus on building scalable solutions for the future of the transportation industry—providing transformative products that meet the evolving needs of our customers on the path to zero emissions. Our investment in innovation leads the way for safety, quality, and performance in delivering compressor technology solutions that exceed customer expectations and drive to industry towards a more sustainable future that includes electric, wobble plate, swash plate, variable, rotary vane, reciprocating, and bus heater designs. Fostering a culture of collaboration and transparency is essential to our responsive design philosophy—deliver today, prepare for tomorrow. We continually push the envelope and set the standard in compressor technology.