Ground Support Worldwide - 13

COVER STORY

The batterypowered
7400 eGPU
can reduce
emissions,
eliminate
noise on the
ramp and cut
maintenance
cost for
operators.
By Josh Smith

W

ith a goal of providing green energy
technologies to the ground support
industry, ITW GSE sought to create a
battery-powered ground power unit
(GPU).

But rather than starting from scratch,
engineers found a power source and applied
it to proprietary equipment already in the
field. With Nissan Leaf battery packs
onboard, and the company's 2400 solid-state converter providing output, the
7400 eGPU was born.
The first eGPUs were introduced in
Europe in 2018 and debuted in the United
States in 2019.
In addition to significantly decreased
noise and minimal maintenance, the eGPU
reduces carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by
90 percent and nitrous oxide (NOx) by 95
percent compared with traditional diesel
ground power.
For these reasons and others, ITW GSE
has been named the Ground Support Worldwide 2020 Product Leader of the Year.

The eGPU's Introduction to
the Market
ITW GSE sought a greener GPU alternative
to avoid the amount of emissions coming
from diesel-driven GPUs during aircraft
turnarounds.
Poul Elvstroem, vice president of sales
and marketing at ITW GSE, points out that
many pieces of ground support equipment
(GSE) used during the turnaround utilize
smaller engines, for example, belt-loaders
or passenger stairs. Other equipment may
have larger engines but are in operation for
a short period of time.
Engine driven GPUs, by contrast, have
large engines and are in use throughout the
turnaround, which requires a substantial
amount of diesel fuel.
"When you look at the biggest power
consumer when you have an aircraft going
through a turnaround, it's by all means
the GPU. It's the first thing you connect
on arrival and it's the last thing that you
disconnect," Elvstroem says. "So here, you
need a lot more battery capacity than you
do with any of the other electrical ground

support equipment pieces that are parked
around the aircraft."
ITW GSE combined two well-known
technologies to create the 7400 eGPU, which
can be used anywhere that a 400 Hz supply
is needed, including gates, remote parking
areas and hangars.
The eGPU is being used throughout
the world, with the first unit being put
into service in 2018 at Amsterdam Airport
Schiphol, Netherlands.
Elvstroem notes previous attempts had
been made by companies in the industry
to design an eGPU, but ITW GSE's 7400 is
first to launch, go through the proper market
testing and receive required certifications.
"We are definitely the first to introduce
the eGPU," he says.
Since the first 7400 was put into service
in the fall of 2018, units have been deployed
across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia and North America.
In January 2019, the 7400 eGPU was
commissioned by United Airlines at Los
Angeles International Airport (LAX).
"The challenges are the same, almost
throughout the world," Elvstroem says. "We
anticipated that Europe would probably be
the most attractive market in the beginning.
"But our learnings have been that we have
not been able to predict this," he adds, pointing to the product's adoption in the Middle
East, Asia and the U.S.

Green Features
Customers that utilize an eGPU can benefit from low emissions, reduced noise and
limited maintenance, Elvstroem explains.
"It is running the most and it is also running with a lot of energy - a lot of power,
because it is, of course, servicing everything
that you switch on onboard the aircraft,
during a turnaround," he says of ground
power units.
According to ITW GSE, replacing one
diesel-powered GPU with the 7400 eGPU

MAY 2020

AviationPros.com

13
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Ground Support Worldwide

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