Where: Austria
What: G-Drive engines for a new range of Hitzinger airport Ground Power Units (GPUs)
Purpose: GPU equipment for supply to Hitzinger customers, including Swissport
Austrian manufacturer Hitzinger is the first European customer for Cummins G-Drive in the airport Ground Power Unit (GPU) sector. Hitzinger is building a new range of models based around G-Drive diesel engines, and an order for 12 engines has already been placed. The order represents a breakthrough for Cummins, whose engines were chosen for a number of advantages including lower fuel consumption.
Cummins won its new business with Hitzinger in the face of competition from other suppliers who were long-established in the European GPU market. "At the moment Hitzinger is still producing GPUs based on another manufacturer’s engines, but they are very satisfied with our prototypes," comments Christoph Gludovacz, Business Development Manager for Cummins Austria - Power Generation and G-Drive.
Airports use GPUs to supply power to aircraft on the ground. The first two of Hitzinger’s newly-designed GPU units using the Cummins G-Drive engines have already been sold to ground services operator Swissport for use at Zurich airport. Swissport intends to deploy four more of the new Cummins G-Drive powered Hitzinger GPUs at other airports in Europe in the near future.
Sales of the new GPUs to Swissport could have wider implications in the longer term. Swissport is a global company active on five continents, operating at nearly 200 locations in more than 30 countries. It provides ground services to around 100 million passengers and handles more than 3 million tonnes of cargo a year. The new Hitzinger GPUs are designed to tolerate wide-ranging conditions, from tropical heat to sub-zero temperatures.
Hitzinger is producing GPUs rated at 90, 120, 140 and 180 kVA, for which Cummins undertook prototyping work based on four different engines: QSB5 G3 for 90 kVA, QSB5 G6 for 120 kVA, QSB7 G2 for 140 kVA and QSB7 G4 for 180 kVA. The first units sold are QSB5 G3 versions. Hitzinger is already planning to take the QSB7 G4 version to exhibitions, intending to show them in South and North America as well as in Europe.
"Choosing Cummins had a number of advantages for them," Gludovacz says. "The engines we provided for the different power ratings are smaller and lighter, and run at 1846 rpm with lower fuel consumption. Moreover, we have worldwide service and parts availability and a great reputation for quality."
Development of the new GPUs involved engine testing against the ISO 6858 GPU standard, first at load steps of 0 - 20%, 0 - 50%, 0 - 80% and 0 - 100% and then back from 100 - 50% and 50 - 0%. Cummins also successfully conducted a high ambient temperature heat test as Hitzinger’s GPUs are fitted with extra-sized radiators to operate in extreme climates. Engine frequency output tests fitted the required 440 - 360 Hz range, and both Tier 3 and EU Stage IIIA emissions targets were met. In the coming months, Cummins is adapting the engines to meet more stringent Tier 4 requirements.
"Today Hitzinger is a happy customer, in the process of creating a new product and a new relationship," Gludovacz remarks. "We are at the very beginning of this relationship at the moment, but everything looks great."
Cummins G-Drive engines are renowned for delivering vital prime, standby or continuous power solutions to help keep the world on the move. To meet the international demand for its products, Cummins manufacturing centers are currently sited in key cities around the world including across the UK, the USA, Brazil, Turkey, India, China, South Korea, Japan and Singapore.