Leonardo DRS is the Leader in PM Machines
With a long history of designing and manufacturing PM machines, Leonardo DRS has the experience to design PM machines to your specifications making your program successful. DRS has successfully designed, built, and tested high-performance machines from 5HP self-contained integral pump motors to naval propulsion motors greater than 35MW. Proven in the harshest of environments, these machines have been utilized in a variety of diverse and demanding applications, including naval propulsion (above and below the surface), oil and gas, commercial marine, and land applications. In marine applications, DRS designs are highly integrated with the ship systems, helping to eliminate losses, improve power quality, and reduce the overall acquisition cost for a platform. Combined with industry-leading reliability and ruggedness, the DRS solution is the best choice for your application.
Permanent Magnet Machines Offer Significant Benefits
Superior Power Density
PM machines deliver more power per pound than any competing technology. With no rotor windings and a higher air gap magnetic flux density, the same output can be achieved in a dramatically smaller, lighter package — a decisive advantage in weight-critical applications like ship propulsion, ground vehicles, and aerospace.
Highest Efficiency in Class
Eliminating rotor excitation losses translates directly to real-world energy savings. In a head-to-head comparison at 50 kW and 6,000 rpm, a PM synchronous motor drive achieved 94.1% system efficiency versus 90.1% for an equivalent induction motor drive — a 43% reduction in total power losses. At scale, that efficiency gap compounds into significant fuel savings, reduced thermal management burden, and extended mission range.
Simplified Maintenance & Reliability
With no brushes, slip rings, or rotor windings to service, PM machines eliminate the components responsible for the vast majority of motor maintenance. A larger operating air gap also improves mechanical reliability and tolerance to misalignment compared to induction machines.
Superior Dynamic Performance
Higher magnetic flux density in the air gap and lower rotor inertia mean PM machines respond faster and more precisely to speed and torque commands — critical for propulsion systems that must react instantly to changing operational demands.
Dual-Use: Motor and Generator
Every PM machine operates equally well as a motor or a generator, giving system designers the flexibility to use a single machine for propulsion, power generation, or both — reducing parts count, logistics footprint, and total cost of ownership.
PR Series
Permanent Magnet Radial (PR) Series PM Motors and Generators
PR72 Series Permanent Magnet (PM) Motors
The Leonardo DRS PR Series machines utilize a conventional stator and rotor configuration with a cylindrical rotor positioned inside of the stator assembly.
Our PR72 series Permanent Magnet (PM) motors ranging from 500kW to 9MW at speeds up to 1,800 rpm utilize Leonardo DRS advanced PM technology with water-cooling to provide robust power-dense motors.
The PR series permanent magnet (PM) motors and generators are designed to maximize the benefits of a direct drive mud pump configuration. Inherently more efficient than a belt drive configuration, a Leonardo DRS PM machine significantly reduces fuel consumption, is more efficient, and reduces parts and maintenance expenditures. Furthermore, a direct drive configuration reduces footprint and weight by eliminating the back half of your pump skid.
Designed for Power-Dense Performance & Industrial Reliability
The Leonardo DRS PR72 series Permanent Magnet (PM) standard family of motors ranging from 500kW to 9MW at speeds up to 1,800 rpm utilize advanced PM technology with direct water-cooling and IEC Class H Insulation to produce highly reliable and durable motors built for continuous-duty industrial service. The PR72 series motors are ideal for marine propulsion, Hybrid Electric Drives (HED), power generation, pumping, hoisting, and drilling applications in the defense and commercial markets. Superior efficiency (>96%) translates to lower energy consumption and reduced operating costs over the motor’s 25-year design service life.
The PR72 is a Standard, Catalog Product Family – not a custom-engineered solution.
This design approach provides flexibility for customer-defined interfaces. Each motor configuration is built from a common set of proven subassemblies, enabling competitive pricing, short lead times, and repeatable quality across all applications. The modular “building block” approach to active length allows you to select the optimal torque rating for your application without incurring non-recurring engineering costs.
The PR72 series motors are operated with a Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) and can be electrically connected to accommodate 1 to 4 drives. While the PR72 series can be operated with a customer-supplied VFD, Leonardo DRS can provide a VFD matched to the motor for optimum system performance.
PRE Series
Permanent Magnet Radial Field Embedded Magnet (PRE) Series Motors
Available in Industry Standard Footprint
The PRE series Permanent Magnet (PM) motor with its impressive power density is designed for new applications where higher performance is desired and for retrofit applications where more power is desired in an existing space. The PRE series motors are built on an industry standard footprint and mounting flang, and blower cooled for added ease and flexibility in installation.
In addition, these machines are designed for use with commercial off-the-shelf variable frequency drives. Remove your old motor, install the Leonardo DRS machine and power up.
PA Series
Permanent Magnet Axial (PA) Series PM Motors and Generators
Deliver more power per pound with continuous high torque, even at a stall.
The Leonardo DRS PA Series machines utilize a rotor disc adjacent to the stator windings to provide higher power densities and its unique “pancake” form factor. Lightweight and compact, the Permanent magnet Axial (PA) was built to last under the world’s most demanding applications.
And since the PA rotor uses permanent magnets, it works equally well as a generator, making it the ideal choice for mobile generator sets, traction systems, cranes, elevators and lifts.
The PA series is ideal for applications requiring high precision and/or high torque, at a low weight and small size.
Proven by years of reliable performance in harsh, rugged applications, the Leonardo DRS PA44-625 permanent magnet motor producing 625 HP (466kW) and at only 395 lbs., is one of the most power dense motors available in industry today. For higher power needs the PA44-625 can be installed back to back to achieve 1,250 HP (932kW) of power.
Rated at 1,000 HP (750kW), the Leonardo DRS PA57-1,000 permanent magnet motor with years of service in transit hybrid electric propulsion, is ideal for hybrid electric and propulsion systems for all applications up to 2,000 HP (1.5MW) with two motors coupled together.
With a long history of robust Variable Frequency Drives, Leonardo DRS offers several options to support all your power conversion requirements for the PA series motors and generators. The MD500A VFD is a significant upgrade of the MD500 VFD that has been coupled with the PA44 for over 20 years in Oil and Gas applications. The Silicon Carbide PEM drives offer compact size using the latest in VFD technologies configured to drive both the PA44-625 and the PA57-1000 to solve all your propulsion and power needs.
PC Series
Permanent Magnet Cup (PC) Series PM Motors and Generators
The Leonardo DRS PC Series machines utilize a cylindrical rotor and stator with the stator positioned inside the rotor. This configuration illustrates the design flexibility PM machines offer coupled with Leonardo DRS PM design experience providing the opportunity to provide compact, efficient and robust machines for your needs.
Permanent Magnet (PM) Machines for Ground Vehicle Power and Propulsion
Leonardo DRS permanent magnet (PM) machines are optimized for their application, whether it is electrical power generation or vehicle propulsion. From the beginning, we have designed and built a wide variety of machines for vehicle propulsion and power. From tracked vehicles to wheel station motors, direct drive or through a gear box, Leonardo DRS has designed, built and tested them all. We do not focus on one architecture; rather, we specialize in axial gap (PA) machines, radial (PR) machines, cup (PC) machines at slow or high speed, with or without bearings, in form factors to meet the customers’ needs.
Leonardo DRS specializes in machine architecture/optimization, working with our customers to provide an optimized system solution. We are experts at architecture/optimization, vendor selection/team building, program management, system engineering, risk management, configuration management, systems integration and test, certification, integrated life-cycle support and other services required to integrate a vehicle’s entire electrical power and propulsion system.
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