The FÉTIS Group, will be opening a new facility in Canada, and developing it’s international operations in France, Germany and Spain to better help OEMs to bring their next generation of low-carbon and automated machines to life.

Expansion into North America

The Fétis Group is announcing the establishment of a new facility in Ontario, Canada, which will be starting production of wiring harnesses for off-highway and specialised machines in November 2023.

“We have been developing our North America strategy following positive discussions with potential partners and customers”, explains Damien Fétis, President, The FÉTIS Group. “Our first facility in North America meets an immediate need in our industry.  Wiring harnesses are becoming more complex with increasing numbers of sensors to support automation, and the addition of high voltage circuits to support the move to vehicle electrification. Our customers tell us that it is difficult to find partners who can produce these systems to the required quality and in the volumes that are typical in our market. We have existing expertise both in the local Canada team and in our established facilities in Europe which have been experiencing high growth. This will be a great way for us to build presence in North America with a service that we know well and where we are highly competitive”

The parallel challenges of decarbonisation and automation

“Electrification of vehicles is not new for The Fétis Group”, says Oliver Lythgoe, Chief Marketing Officer, The FÉTIS group. “It is more than 10 years since we implemented our first electrification project. Now we are seeing the transition to lower carbon machines move into a new phase. Many OEMs in the market have already successfully completed and tested their first proof-of-concept electric machines and are now moving on to more serious machine development projects with an intention for series production and commercial sale. This is considerably more demanding for OEMs in terms of engineering, supply chain, quality processes, validation and planning for field supportability. We are restructuring our group to support OEM product development teams through this period of change”

The FÉTIS Group will be focusing on the following four areas of technology to help OEMs bring machines to life:

Firstly, there is the supply and integration of Power Sources themselves. In many cases these will be batteries, but hydrogen fuel cell or hydrogen combustion engines are also in demand due to faster refuelling and ability to operate in areas without grid connection.

Secondly, there is Electrical Integration. Power, often at high voltage, needs to be efficiently and safely managed. We have developed in-house capabilities for power distribution hardware, power management software and wiring production. Facilities in Germany and Spain are critical to this new capability and these are being further strengthened with the opening of the new facility in Canada.

Thirdly, we are expanding our software and controls activities. In the last two years we have doubled the number of software developers. As the industry moves from proof-of-concept projects to series production, concepts such as functional safety are driving a demand for rigour in software and hardware design.

Fourthly, we integrate the electric and hydraulic traction and actuation components to turn power into motion and useful work. Hydraulics will continue to be important in future machines, particularly for linear actuation, but the next generation of ultra-efficient hydraulics will need a much tighter integration with the electrical power systems and the electronic control architecture.

Expanding beyond off-highway machines

In 2004 a team was formed within The Fétis Group to serve off-highway industries such as construction, agriculture, materials handling and airport ground support. These applications are still focus areas which are experiencing sustained growth. “our activities have now expanded into adjacent sectors which are a great fit for our technical capabilities and where we are experiencing strong customer demand “says Lythgoe.  “Specialist on-highway trucks such as cranes, refuse vehicles, fire engines and similar have complex power requirements which we are well placed to serve. We will also be providing solutions for lower carbon power generation in the range 50 to 500kW.”

Production capabilities complement engineering know-how

“We know, that it is not enough to design a great machine.” says Lythgoe, “OEM’s need to develop simple, dependable and cost-efficient supply chains for low carbon systems of their future products. To support this, we have in-house complete system prototype and production capabilities.”

The new international organisational structure has the critical mass required to bring OEM a depth of expertise, whilst remaining lean and agile. “The ability to be fast, flexible and responsive will differentiate us in this fast evolving market”, concludes Lythgoe.