Non-road mobile machinery (NRMM) encounters hazards ranging from inclement weather to worksite shocks and impacts. Yet the charger faces a unique challenge: dissipating internal heat across these conditions.  

As NRMM undergoes wider electrification, compact designs necessitate integrated components. That, in turn, generates concentrated heat—requiring smart thermal management to prevent performance loss and premature component failure. 

By reducing output power when approaching high temperatures, modern charging solutions ensure heat buildup evolves from a safety concern to an engineering opportunity.

However, leveraging this opportunity is not as simple as appending a fan post-installation. 

For industrial OEMs seeking maximum ROI, proper cooling demands careful planning from the earliest design phases.

Thermal Regulation in On-Board Charger Design 

How temperature affects charging depends on many factors, both external (ambient temperature, weather, etc.) and internal (charger design, position inside the machine, etc.). 

Given these potential variables, the solution must be tailored specifically to the application.

Risks of failing to do so—that is, improper thermal management of the charger—may include:

Accelerated component degradation — Excessive heat accelerates aging in the electronic components within chargers, such as power transistors and capacitors. This results in increased maintenance costs at best, and unexpected (early) component failure at worst.

Thermal Regulation in Battery Design 

Even when a charger is correctly sized and properly cooled, one question remains: How do you control battery heat? To do so, an increasing number of OEMs make use of advanced battery management systems (BMS) to control battery cell and charge parameters. 

Without BMS, excessive battery heat could result in:

• Reduced battery lifespan – Even durable battery chemistries might suffer from a shorter lifespan without proper thermal management, reducing overall operational ROI.

• Thermal runaway – Batteries may suffer from thermal runaway, a self-perpetuating reaction in which rising temperatures escalate to the point of overheating.

To summarize: Thermal mismanagement does not simply threaten components; it undermines the entire value proposition of electrification. 

If we consider the battery and charger as a complex communication system with all controls and protections in place, we still have thermal management at machine and application level to design.

Proper mitigation is essential to maximize machine uptime, preserve battery health, and protect all equipment from costly, in-the-field failures. 

Thermal Management Strategies

While batteries alone and chargers alone may have a wide operating temperature range, the charging cycle is a more delicate process. Only robust thermal management ensures safe, efficient charging cycles. 

Consider the two primary paths to achieving this. 

#1. Passive Cooling 

An attractive OEM option due to its sheer simplicity, passive cooling strategies eliminate the need for moving parts and electrical power. Passive solutions often involve:

• Aluminum heatsinks or fins to increase surface area for heat dissipation
• Natural convection pathways and touchpoints within charging houses
• Thermally conductive potting and insulation for sensitive components 

However, passive options have clear limitations. 

For example, environments with high ambient temperatures may reduce their effectiveness from the very start. Compact machinery also introduces greater overheating risk due to inherently restricted airflow and space limitations, rendering standard convection cooling ineffective.

Rather than rely solely on passive cooling techniques, many OEMs choose to leverage them in addition to other strategies. 

#2. Active Cooling 

While more complex than passive methods, active cooling introduces mechanical elements to “actively” move heat away from components. 

Common configurations revolve around either: 

• Fan-forced air cooling  – Circulates air across heat-generating components and critical convection points to accelerate natural heat dispersion. 

• Liquid cooling systems – Leverages water or specialized coolants (such as a water-glycol mix) to absorb and transport heat away from the system.

Such cooling techniques enable far greater thermal control. This translates to consistent charger and battery performance, whether operating in hot climates, enclosed installations, or under sustained loads.

Why Mid-Power Applications Are Especially Susceptible 

Low-voltage systems operating around or under 10kW offer a simplified, cost-effective electrification platform for NRMM. Yet they also introduce unique thermal risks.

Whereas high-voltage systems often employ sizable machine frames, compact NRMM is just that—compact. This makes them more vulnerable to localized heat build-up, especially since industrial applications demand sealed charging enclosures to protect against ingress. 

Compounding this, warehouses (a common deployment zone for low-voltage machinery) operate under increasingly reduced human oversight due to advances in automation. In other words, indoor worksites once cooled for the comfort of human operators may see reduced need for climate control.

Given these and other factors, one thing is certain: Without proper thermal control built into the charger and battery, even standard charging cycles may push components beyond optimal ranges. 

The Criticality of Charger Selection in Thermal Management

Clearly, robust cooling strategies are critical to avoid thermal complications and optimize operations. That starts with choosing a robust charging solution—one tailored to the specific demands of OEM operations. 

That is what ZIVAN’s CT3.3 charging solution delivers.

Available in both fan-based and liquid-cooled options, this high-performance charger equips OEMs to implement:

• Hybrid cooling strategies, pairing passive cooling with the CT3.3’s powerful active cooling 
• Air-cooled compatibility ideal for compact, sealed machinery with limited airflow
• Liquid-cooled configurations for enhanced thermal control over integrated components

But the CT3.3 delivers much more than simple cooling. 

With a modular construction and intelligent, real-time thermal monitoring, the CT3.3 ensures both efficiency and safety from day one. For off-road machinery, the advantages include: 

• 3.3 kW of compact, rugged charging power designed for harsh industrial environments

• Integrated options for DC-DC conversion (to power auxiliary systems such as lights and sensors) and an EVSE interface (enabling compatibility with public EV charging stations)

• Scalable, parallel charging operations with up to 6 units, capable of up to 19.8 kW of power delivery

With a minimal footprint and the operational versatility for on-board, off-board, or hybrid charging strategies, the CT3.3 offers OEMs the flexibility to optimize performance without compromising.

ZIVAN: Charging Solutions Designed for OEM Needs

Electric drivetrains run cooler than combustion engines. But that doesn’t mean thermal management is any less important. Rather, it emerges as a critical design priority—for safety and efficiency.

That is why charging solutions underpin thermal management strategies.

With flexible cooling options, modular architecture, and extensive testing across key OEM verticals, ZIVAN’s CT3.3 uniquely matches the needs for low-power, mid-voltage machinery. From material handling and light construction to agricultural and maritime applications, the CT3.3 delivers compact, high-performance charging to any electrification project.

Every component counts in compact electrified architectures. Ensure your choice of charging solution drives maximum ROI across the drivetrain with ZIVAN.

Media Contact 
Violetta Fulchiati | Marketing & Communication Specialist 
Phone: +39 0522 960593
E-mail: marketing@zivan.it