The trailer turns into an efficiency system: BPW at IAA Transportation

• BPW: World premiere for Europe's most important trailer segment
• ECO Air: Six years of market success – more than 200,000 trailers prove the concept of "one for all"
• idem telematics: System-open platform for transparency, compliance and digital fleet management
• HESTAL FlowMaster: Aerodynamics with rapid amortisation – now for even more vehicle types

Wiehl, 29 July 2026 --- Transport is becoming more expensive. Rising costs, limited workshop capacity and increasing demands for sustainability and digitalisation are putting pressure on the transport sector. At the same time, vehicles should remain in service for longer and fleets should operate more cost-effectively. So the greatest potential for efficiency no longer lies in individual components, but in intelligent interplay between the running gear, aerodynamics, data and service.

This is where the BPW Group comes in, with its brands BPW, Ermax, HBN, Hestal and idem telematics. At IAA Transportation in Hall 26, Stand A30, it will be presenting trailer solutions as a cross-linked efficiency system developed in the field together with vehicle manufacturers, fleet operators and workshops. The focus is not on individual product innovations, but rather on the question: How can transport be made more cost-effective in the long term?

BPW: World premiere for Europe's most important trailer segment

BPW is keeping a particular highlight secret until IAA Transportation: The company will be unveiling a world premiere for the European 9t segment in Hanover. Trailers with this axle load form the backbone of road freight transport; they account for around 75 per cent of all freight journeys. The economic impact of every technical improvement is correspondingly large: Where every kilogramme of payload, every rolling resistance value and every service procedure counts, details determine the cost-effectiveness of entire fleets.

BPW has re-evaluated this specific segment and has developed a solution that consistently enhances efficiency, payload, ease of maintenance and life cycle costs. BPW will be presenting further details for the first time at IAA Transportation in Hanover. One thing is already clear: This innovation is aimed at all vehicle manufacturers and fleet operators who want to operate within the European standard segment in a way that is not only easier, but also more cost-effective in the long term.

ECO Air: 200,000 vehicles in six years

Six years ago, BPW introduced the 9t air suspension unit ECO Air. On the occasion of IAA Transportation, BPW is taking stock: Since 2020, more than 200,000 two and three-axle trailers have been equipped with ECO Air throughout Europe. Today, the air suspension unit is used in almost all major vehicle types in European trailer manufacturing – from curtainsiders and refrigerated box trailers to construction site tippers.

This success is based on a principle that is as simple as it is consistent: simple, modular and cost-effective. With its modular system based on just a few individual components, ECO Air offers vehicle manufacturers a wide range of solutions with minimum complexity. At the same time, fleet operators benefit from a cost-effective solution that has proven its worth in everyday use.

iC Plus: Fleet on the move, costs under control

With its intelligent running gear generation iC Plus, BPW demonstrates how running gear technology, telematics and service come together to form an intelligent system. Rather than fixed maintenance intervals, it is the actual vehicle state that counts: digital vehicle records, condition-based maintenance and cross-linked service processes minimise downtime and make operating costs more predictable. Brake lining wear, braking performance, tyre pressure, axle load and even road surface conditions are analysed. Real-time data and algorithms detect maintenance requirements at an early stage before there is a risk of unplanned downtime.

Hence the trailer is evolving from a traditional item of equipment into an actively managed efficiency system – an approach that BPW is continuing to develop with new features and services. At IAA, BPW will be demonstrating how iC Plus, in combination with individual maintenance and bespoke service concepts, can not only ease the burden on large fleets but also on small and medium-sized transport enterprises.

idem telematics: Think openly, cross-link intelligently

Within the BPW Group, idem telematics provides the digital basis for this. The open-system cargofleet 3 platform allows vehicle data from different manufacturers to be brought together in a single environment and utilised for fleet management, compliance and maintenance.

At IAA, the European market leader will demonstrate how intelligent cross-linking can make vehicle fleets measurably more cost-effective and safer to operate, and which functions can help transport companies efficiently meet regulatory requirements while also simplifying their processes.

HESTAL FlowMaster: Immediate efficiency gains – now for even more vehicle concepts

Not all innovations need to be complex. With the FlowMaster, HESTAL demonstrates how the aerodynamics of trailers can be substantially improved with a simple retrofit. The solution reduces aerodynamic drag at the rear of the vehicle, thereby unlocking savings potential that quickly becomes apparent in everyday fleet operations. Visitors to IAA Transportation can see this potential for themselves on site: Hestal's experts will be calculating the potential savings in real time based on individual vehicle and operational data. At IAA, HESTAL is exhibiting a substantially expanded range of FlowMaster variants, thereby making the solution available for even more vehicle concepts and applications.

Technology, cross-linking and experience: cost-effectiveness is achieved through synergy

IAA Transportation 2026 showcases how BPW understands transport: It is not individual components that determine a trailer’s commercial success, but rather their intelligent interplay. From especially light running gear systems through proven large-scale production solutions and digital services right up to aerodynamics and telematics, the BPW Group pursues a common goal: to make transport more economical, predictable and sustainable.

Frederik Seglö, General Manager Trailer Solutions and Mobility Services at BPW: "For more than 125 years, BPW has been developing solutions not just for trade fair stands, but for the everyday needs of vehicle manufacturers, fleet operators and workshops. At IAA Transportation, we will be demonstrating how our practical experience gives rise to innovations that are making transport more cost-effective, step by step."