Air-cooled, rare earth-free electric drive system makes iVT Expo debut

Integrated electric drive system that removes liquid cooling and rare earth dependency from off-highway electrification debuts at iVT Expo 2026

This year’s iVT Expo sees the debut of a unique proposition for off-highway electrification: an air-cooled, rare earth-free electric drive system available as a matched, drop-in solution across Europe.

Developed by Advanced Electric Machines (AEM), the system brings together the company’s HDRM 150 motor and a matched air-cooled inverter as an integrated unit operating at up to 700V with a peak motor output exceeding 30kW. It goes on public display for the first time at Hall 1, Köln Messe, on 10–11 June.

The significance of the pairing lies in what it removes. Conventional electric drivetrains typically require liquid cooling for both motor and inverter, thermal management systems that add weight, plumbing, maintenance requirements, and potential points of failure. By matching the air-cooled H10B inverter from Emsiso to the air-cooled HDRM 150, AEM has eliminated that infrastructure entirely. The result is a drivetrain that is simpler to integrate, and significantly easier to service in the field, with no coolant circuits to maintain, no pumps to fail, and no additional packaging constraints for OEM engineers to work around.

That simplicity is compounded by the rare earth-free architecture of the HDRM 150. Permanent magnet motors rely on neodymium, dysprosium, and other rare earth elements. Extraction is geographically concentrated, and pricing and availability have proven vulnerable to geopolitical disruption. The system therefore addresses two of the most persistent barriers to off-highway electrification simultaneously: supply chain exposure and drivetrain complexity.

As a matched, drop-in solution, the system is designed for straightforward integration into existing platforms. OEM and Tier 1 engineers receive a validated motor and inverter combination rather than individual components requiring separate integration and calibration work. The system is proven, with AEM motors having accumulated more than six-and-a-half million kilometres across real-world deployments.

James Widmer, CEO of Advanced Electric Machines, explained:

“Permanent magnet motors deliver excellent performance, but they come with a supply chain attached that is neither stable nor secure. The HDRM 150 removes that dependency entirely and does so without asking OEMs to accept a performance compromise or a complex integration. Pairing it with a matched air-cooled inverter means we can offer something the market hasn’t seen before: a complete, drop-in rare-earth free electric drive system that is simpler, more resilient, and ready to work.”

AEM is exhibiting at iVT Expo 2026 on stand 1020 The HDRM 150 and matched air cooled inverter are available for demonstration on 10–11 June, Hall 1, Köln Messe.