With the first quarter now behind us, and plans firming up for the remainder of the year and beyond, we can look back on a very successful beginning to 2022. Bowman's Head of Programmes and Commercial Manager, Will Bowers, shares more detail…

The first quarter of 2022 has successfully delivered, exceeding the plans we set out at the beginning of the year. There have been many highlights along the way, and we’ve also put the building blocks in place for an exciting Q2.

Further to the achievements in Q1, with the crazy fuel prices we are seeing at the beginning of 2022, the eTurbo Systems technology has proven to be even more important in the journey to help make the use of existing fuels more efficient and dramatically lower emissions, whilst also planning for a future with incoming, non-traditional and blended fuels by greatly enhancing engine adaptability.

Here are some highlights:

• An eCompressor application is gaining increasing traction in the market with a key OEM development partner
• An eTurbocharger for heavy-duty truck engine application is going into initial prototype build and bench testing both at Bowman and with the OEM co-development partner
• An eTurbocharger for diesel locomotive application has commenced testing with another co-development partner, and plans are coming together for delivery of production units
• We are moving forward with detailed product requirements for the Bowman fast-start eCompressor, having manufactured a prototype in Q1 and with a field trial booked in for Q2
• We are progressing with our InnovateUK supported development of a Bowman eTurbocharger for diesel and gas generators
• The new generation of power electronics that will be used across Bowman’s eTurbocharger, eCompressor, eTurbine projects has begun development with bench testing of key components due to start soon
• This is in addition to the eTurbine products that are already available and being deployed in both standard and new applications – reducing greenhouse gas emissions today

In the last newsletter I shared that we are progressing early-stage discussions and planning for fuel cell applications for eTurbocharger and eCompressor, and following the Future Fuels articles published by our Performance Engineering Director, Keith Douglas, on our LinkedIn pages last month we are seeing more interest in this area and continue to develop plans to be a part of this exciting journey; more to follow on this later in the year!

With all projects progressing well, and the real potential to add further interesting projects into the mix, Bowman has several new people due to start within Engineering and Programmes teams within the coming months. This sits nicely alongside the substantial refurbishment of our facilities in Southampton, where we have had a great proposal from our contractors, and expect the works to be completed within Q2.

Personally, looking back on Q1, with the Covid constraints easing in many areas, having the office full of people, with prototypes in build and test, it’s a real pleasure to be back.

Within Q2 we have many more exciting goals to achieve, with more customer trials, prototypes to be built, and meetings with new and existing customers. We will be attending some key shows and conferences, (keep an eye on our website for more information) and showcasing our innovative new products. It’s an exciting time, and if you think that you want to join us on our journey, please look over at the careers page of the website as we have several vacancies open at the moment.

Let the building of a better tomorrow continue!