Electric vehicle owners across the globe will soon enjoy life in the fast lane with the launch of ABB’s latest EV-charging technology.

ABB, a global leader in robotics and industrial automation, unveiled the new Terra HP fast charger at Hannover Messe, Germany this week.

Operating at powers of up to 350 kilowatts, the new ABB Terra High Power charger, adds up to 200km of range to an electric vehicle in just 8 minutes – which the company claims is the world’s fastest EV charger.

ABB chargers are being installed around the world and are ideally suited for use at highway rest stops and petrol stations.

They were recently selected for use by Electrify America, the biggest electric vehicle infrastructure project to date in the United States.

ABB now boasts the largest installed base of fast-charging stations worldwide, with more than 6,500 DC fast charging stations in 60 countries.

Formula E partnership

It’s extensive product portfolio includes charging technologies for electric cars, buses and trucks, as well as solutions for the electrification of ships, railways and cableways.

Earlier this year ABB forged a partnership with Formula E, the world’s first fully electric international FIA motorsport series.

A Formula E race car and driving simulators have been on display to visitors to the ABB booth at Hannover Messe.

And B&R, a leading solutions provider for machine and factory automation worldwide, will be participating for the first time at the ABB booth.

ABB acquired B&R last July and the company has been integrated into its Industrial Automation division as its global Machine & Factory Automation business unit.

Ground-breaking report

At Hannover Messe ABB also unveiled a ground-breaking new report with The Economist Intelligence Unit: The Automation Readiness Index: Who Is Ready for the Coming Wave of Innovation?

The report finds that even the best-prepared countries must develop more effective education policies and training programs to make the most of opportunities and address the challenges of artificial intelligence and industrial automation.

ABB also displayed additional pioneering technologies across utilities, industries, and transport & infrastructure to highlight its ability to bring electricity from any power plant to any plug and automate industries from natural resources to finished products.

Other innovative ABB solutions on display at Hannover Messe 2018 include:

• B&R's ACOPOStrak, the intelligent, flexible transport system that's setting a new standard for smart-factory motion control in the era of mass customization, and B&R's Orange Box, an advanced analytics solution for brownfield assets, which enables users to access previously unreadable data from digitally isolated machinery.

• The EVLunic AC wallbox, available with from 4.6 kW to 22 kW of charging power, serving as a high quality, cost effective e-car charging point for home and business use, in addition to the Terra HP line of public-network charging stations for electric vehicles.

• ABB Ability^TM Power Transformer, with smart devices built into every ABB transformer to enable customers to remotely monitor vital parameters in real time for improved reliability and higher utilization of grid assets and power networks.

• ABB Ability^TM Digital Powertrain, which ensures efficient operation of powertrain equipment, including drives, motors, bearings and pumps. A suite of monitoring services – including advanced analytics and maintenance planning – enables users to digitally “see” operational variables through an integrated, one-stop portal.

• ABB Ability^TM, the unified, cross-industry digital capability that empowers customers to know more, do more and do better – together. The complete list of 210 solutions is available in the new ABB Ability^TM Solutions Catalogue, which was launched at the event.

• STIR, the submersible transformer inspection robot, which makes it possible to internally inspect transformers without draining their oil, making the task safer and less expensive.

• Gas-insulated switchgear (GIS), which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. With over 30,000 installations worldwide, GIS uses pressurized sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) as its insulating gas instead of air, to enable safer electrical operations in confined spaces.

• ABB Ability^TM  Connected Services, unlocking a world of possibilities in diagnostics, monitoring, predictive maintenance and asset optimization, for up to 25 percent fewer incidents and 60 percent faster response and issue recovery times.

• YuMi®, the first truly collaborative dual-armed robot and SafeMove2, the safety solution that enables robots to safely share working spaces with human operators while reducing total investment by 30 percent.

From left: German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, ABB CEO Ulrich Spiesshofer, First Lady Mrs Angélica Rivera, Managing Director of ABB Germany Hans-Georg Krabbe, Managing Director of ABB Mexico Vicente Magana at Hannover Messe 2018