16R8 Spineless Platform Module

70 Metres. 350 Tonnes. 16 Axle Rows. A New Generation of Heavy Transport.

MTE’s latest 16R8 Spineless Platform Module has completed its first major Australian assignment, transporting a 195-tonne transformer approximately 1,200 kilometres from Adelaide into New South Wales.

The complete transport combination stretched approximately 70 metres, weighed around 350 tonnes, and operated with multiple prime-mover configurations - including one truck at the front with two behind, and at times two at the front with one behind.

At the centre of that combination was MTE’s 29.2-metre 16-row platform, equipped with the most advanced version of our E-Command electronic steering technology developed to date.

But the real story isn't simply the scale of the load.

It's how the trailer steers.

E-Command PivotShift™ - Any-Axle Selectable Pivot Technology

One of the defining features of the new ODLS platform is E-Command PivotShift™.

Unlike a conventional fixed steer-about arrangement, PivotShift allows the operator to select any one of the 16 axle rows as the true geometric pivot point of the trailer.

If Axle 4 is selected, the entire 29.2-metre platform steers around Axle 4.

Select Axle 8, and the entire steering geometry moves to Axle 8.

Select Axle 12, and the trailer now pivots around Axle 12.

The system continues to take its steering demand from the truck-to-trailer connection - either the turntable sensor or drawbar angle sensor - while E-Command automatically recalculates the required steering angle of every other axle relative to the newly selected pivot.

The operator can change that pivot point while the combination is travelling.

This allows the effective steering centre of a 16-row platform to be repositioned to suit the road, intersection, accessway, site or manoeuvre ahead.

It is not simply steering override.

It is real-time recalculation of the complete trailer steering geometry around a chosen axle.

Six years of electronic steering development

PivotShift is not a technologythat appeared overnight.

MTE has been developingselectable electronic pivot steering for approximately six years.

The technology began in our electronically steered house trailers before being developed further through specialised heavy transport applications, including an earlier modular trailer for Titan Cranes.

The ODLS 16R8 represents themost advanced evolution of that work to date.

Road-going electronic steering

The ODLS platform is designed not only for low-speed manoeuvrability, but for genuine road transport.

During its first loaded assignment, the combination regularly travelled between 55 and 65 km/h, reaching speeds of up to 68 km/h.

Throughout the journey, E-Command continued to actively control the geometry of all 16 axle rows.

Multiple vehicle-speed inputs, together with information from the drawbar or turntable angle sensor, allow the system to automatically alter steering behaviour as operating speed changes.

At low speeds, the system can prioritise manoeuvrability.

As road speed increases, E-Command changes the steering strategy to provide the stability required for long-distance transport.

Additional safety logic is integrated into drawbar operation, including braking functions designed around defined steering and operating conditions.

The result is a platform capable of operating in tight sites and confined areas while also being engineered for long-distance transport on the road.

One platform. Multiple configurations.

The ODLS 16R8 is also much more than a fixed 16-row trailer.

The platform is built from modular sections that can include 2-, 4- and 6-row modules, allowing ODLS to configure the equipment around the requirements of each particular transport task.

Modules can be positioned indifferent locations and orientations within the combination.

Once the physical trailer arrangement has been established and the system configured, E-Command calculates the steering relationship required for that particular combination.

This gives ODLS the ability to build the trailer around the job, rather than forcing every job to fit one fixed trailer configuration.

The same platform can also operate with either a detachable gooseneck or drawbar, further increasing the range of applications available from one modular transport system.

Intelligence behind E-Command

Behind the steering is the most advanced electronic architecture MTE has incorporated into an E-Command platform.

The ODLS system uses a multi-CAN control network with continuous system analysis, event logging and live operating information.

Steering and alignment data is monitored throughout the platform, while operators have access to steering, suspension and other trailer functions through an in-cab touchscreen and Danfoss wireless remote.

The system provides visibility across the complete platform while also recording detailed operating information for system analysis, diagnostics and ongoing development.

Designed in Hamilton. Proven across Australia.

The ODLS platform was designed, manufactured, assembled and developed at MTE’s Hamilton facility before being shipped to Australia.

Extensive testing and development went into the system before it left New Zealand.

But the real proof was always going to be on the road.

Its first major assignment delivered exactly that:

195 tonnes - transformer payload

Approximately 350 tonnes - complete transport combination

70 metres - overall transport length

29.2 metres - platform length

16 axle rows - each capable of becoming the selected pivot point

Approximately 1,200 kilometres - first loaded assignment

Up to 68 km/h - road speed achieved

For MTE, this journey represents far more than the delivery of another trailer.

It is the real-world validation of years of electronic steering development and a significant step forward in what a road-going modular heavy transport platform can do.

The ODLS 16R8 combines Any-Axle Pivot control, real-time steering geometry, speed-dependent electronic steering, modular reconfiguration, multi-CAN system intelligence and long-distance road capability in one highly specialised transport platform.

Developed specifically around the requirements of ODLS – Overdimensional Lift & Shift.

Designed in New Zealand.

Proven over 1,200 kilometres of Australian road.

And this was only its first job.