1.2-megawatt charger displayed at ACT Expo
ABB E-mobility brought to ACT Expo its new MCS1200 Megawatt Charging System, designed for ultra-fast charging of heavy-duty electric vehicles.
“What you see in front of you here is the future of heavy vehicle charging,” vowed Brandt Hastings, president of ABB E-mobility, North America. “This is our 1.2 megawatt (1,200 kW) charging system designed to charge heavy vehicles rapidly and get them back out on the road so they can perform their routes and deliver their goods.”

Much attention went into the user interface, which offers many customization options. To demonstrate, Hastings loaded the screen with a welcome message featuring the Trucknews.com logo. The charger is designed to recharge a heavy truck in 30 minutes, taking advantage of the 30-minute break drivers are legally required to take during their driving shift.
“This is for a lot of energy, to really get the truck back out on the road,” Hastings emphasized, likening the intuitive user experience to that of an iPhone.
That attention to design details was carried over to the cabinet, which is easy to access for repairs or servicing.
“We also focused on making it very easy to use for the service technician, because if a charger is down, you need to get it back up as quickly as possible,” Hastings explained.
ABB E-mobility said the 1.2-megawatt charger aligns with the trucking industry’s needs. MCS and CCS outlets are available. The company envisions the charger being deployed by network operators or fleets, publicly or behind the fence.
The MCS1200 will be commercially available in the U.S. and Canada later this year.
“We have built a system by logically separating a charger into four distinct subsystems—the user experience domain, the power delivery domain, the mechatronic domain, and the cloud domain—each functioning as an independent subsystem,” Michael Halbherr, ABB E-mobility CEO said in a related press release.
“Unlike conventional chargers, where a user interface failure can disable the entire system, our architecture ensures charging continues even if the screen or payment system encounters issues. Moreover, we can improve each subsystem at its own pace without having to change the entire system.”
The company is promising 99% uptime. The MCS1200 is the newest in ABB E-mobility’s full line of electric vehicle chargers, which were on display at ACT Expo.

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