The young start-up company Moteg from Flensburg has only been on the market for two years. It was able to establish itself in the trend industry of e-mobility in a short time, because founder Dr. As a former development manager for electric motors at Danfoss, Siegfried Götz is no novice. With professional experience and extensive knowledge in the field of electromobility with him, he founded his own engineering office Moteg. The construction of a production site for electric motors in the region is planned for this year. In the following interview, he comments on the prospects for Moteg GmbH and the development of electromobility in Germany.
GCM: In 2014 you founded the start-up Moteg as a former development manager at Danfoss. How did this step come about?
For any successful start-up of a new business, several factors must come together. The financial means must be available and the start team must have the competence and motivation to shape the future itself. Above all, however, the market must be ready for the idea to be implemented.
GCM: That means in detail?
The initial core know-how of the envisaged Moteg team focused on the development of particularly light, powerful, energy-efficient and quiet electric drives and motors. This results in the following
Main business areas: aviation, electromobility and automobile construction. In addition to the stable aviation market and automotive sector, the time is undoubtedly ripe, especially for electromobility, which is becoming ever more important. It is therefore not without reason that we will be producing the new product group of auxiliary units for electric commercial vehicles in our new production plant next year, which we expect to be a great success. From January 2018, the start of production of a special electric motor developed for aviation is contractually guaranteed.
GCM: Which core competencies are Moteg's focus?
The core competencies of Moteg are the analysis, simulation, construction and production of electric drives as well as advice and planning for the electrification of commercial vehicle fleets.
On a large scale, we do analyzes and simulations of, for example, bus networks in public transport. Here not only the future electric drive of the vehicles is simulated, but also, for example, the air resistance, the acceleration and braking processes and the entire topography are taken into account in order to ultimately achieve the required energy consumption of each individual vehicle with an accuracy of better than 5 percent to be able to calculate. We then use this to create a technical and business concept for converting from diesel to electric operation. On a small scale, our absolute strength lies in developing and ultimately simulating a new special electric motor in the computer to such an extent that the performance data calculated from it usually only deviate marginally from the measured values of the first sample. This enables us to ensure very short development cycles for our units, which saves resources and costs.
GCM: In which areas of electric motor development can we expect progress in the coming years?
The key word here is system integration! In all mobile areas, the power-to-weight ratio of the system components is of course of decisive interest. In the electrification of mobile drive technology, it is or is becoming more and more important to use electric motors that meet the exact system requirements. Here it is particularly important to correctly take into account the exact operating behavior depending on the operating temperatures that arise and their interactions with adjacent system components. Current and future electric motor development is no longer just the selection or modification of a catalog motor! So it is primarily no longer about new or better materials and designs, but about the more intelligent use of these and their increasingly complex advance simulations.
GCM: Which infrastructural measures help electromobility gain more acceptance among the participants?
The lack of infrastructure is often cited by many as one of the main reasons for the hesitant transition to electromobility and as one of the reasons for the current lack of public acceptance of electric vehicles. I think that many people here are making things a little too easy for themselves. Yes, the electric car has a range disadvantage compared to the combustion engine. And yes, we need a widespread introduction
electric vehicles have a corresponding fast charging infrastructure, especially on long-distance main axes such as motorways and federal highways. But who is the predestined customer to buy an e-car now and today? It is not the salesperson who spends 5 to 6 hours on the motorway every day and drives more than 500 kilometers per day. It is the commuters who take their second car to work or to the next commuter parking lot with a connection to the train, for example. They cover 30 to 100 kilometers a day and park overnight in their own garage or carport. This group of people will carry out more than 95 percent of their charging processes on the private charging infrastructure. For this he may even use electricity from his own photovoltaic system. So he does not need a public charging infrastructure at all.
GCM: But why are only a few people who currently meet this mobility profile switching to electric vehicles?
Simple: Because it just doesn't pay off economically compared to the combustion engine and the financial aspect is understandably in the foreground for many. But back to your question about infrastructure. I think the installation of fast chargers on the main axes and charging stations at central neuralgic points where the vehicle is parked for longer, for example commuter parking lots, multi-storey car parks and at employers, will significantly increase the acceptance of electromobility.
GCM: Electric motor production is planned in the region in the near future. Which location factors speak in favor of Germany as a production location?
For Moteg, I can summarize these factors in five terms: quality, flexibility, speed, market proximity and high-tech. Whenever high-performance motors are required for special applications or motors have to be developed specifically for the application, production in Germany almost always pays off. As an example, I can mention a current development project for aviation. In addition to the very sophisticated technology, the highest quality requirements must also be met in production. Certification according to the DIN EN 2017 aviation standard is also planned for Moteg by the end of 9100.
GCM: Thank you very much, Dr. Götz
Source: green car magazine issue I / 2017
More information about Moteg: Homepage of Moteg GmbH
Questions and suggestions under 01575/287 3616 or by email to leser@greencarmagazine.de.
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