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EDI PowerDrive™ 6000 Surpasses Million-Mile Mark
Exploring Clean Energy Technology in Class-6 Vehicles and Beyond
Efficient Drivetrains first debuted their EDI PowerDrive™ 6000 series on the roads in 2015. At the close of this year, we are pleased to announce that a fleet of buses equipped with the EDI PowerDrive™ 6000 technology has surpassed one million miles on all manners of terrain.
The EDI PowerDrive™ 6000 series was created with mass transportation in mind and delivered not only upwards of 40% improvement in fuel economy but also emissions reductions in comparison to its fuel-powered counterparts. Over the course of the last eighteen months, the buses operated on urban roads, highways, and mountainous regions, reporting full capability of navigating different settings with the same kind of ease and power as fuel and diesel powered vehicles. “Throughout the first million miles on our EDI PowerDrive™ 6000,” said Taylor Yu, the company’s Head of China Development, “we gathered vehicle performance and optimization intelligence, emissions reduction information, and fuel savings data--all logged in real-life scenarios.”
In light of increasingly stringent environmental and industry regulations, EDI has become a key player in providing clients with affordable HEV and PHEV technology. Several production orders for the EDI PowerDrive™ 6000 series have been closed, while additional ones are to be expected in the upcoming year. Also to be expected in 2017 are the EDI PowerDrive™ 8000 and EDI PowerDrive™ 8000ev series, which will be used in class-8 port trucks.
Read the full release
Advanced Work Truck Program
As national, state, and local governing bodies advance regulations to evolve towards a zero-vehicle emissions future, utility companies continue to lead the way by responding with fleet solutions that use electricity as a primary fuel source.
This year, EDI delivered three classes of vehicles, class-3, 5, and 6, for the utility industry—spanning OEM platforms GM, Ford, and Peterbilt. EDI partnered with utility industry leader, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) to develop the innovative work truck solutions based upon EDI’s world-first medium-duty PHEV drivetrain. Available in two major configurations—both of which come standard with 25-35+ miles of all-electric range—the new work trucks offer more power and performance than PG&E’s conventional diesel work trucks, while enabling PG&E to reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent.
In late 2015, PG&E announced plans to invest one-third of its annual fleet purchases in electric vehicles and plug in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) over the next five years, totaling more than $100 million.
"The electrification of our transportation system will be essential in helping California to meet its long-term goals for greenhouse gas reductions. Converting more of our fleets to electric vehicles is a powerful way for the utility industry to take the lead and set an example," said Tony Earley, chairman, CEO and president of PG&E Corporation.
Features include:
- 25-35+ mile all electric vehicle driving range
- 350+ mile range with Series-Parallel PHEV Drive
- Highway speed of 65+ mph in full electric vehicle mode
- Up to 500 horsepower available in parallel mode
- 24+ hours idle free power for vehicle ePTO, accessories and job site tools
- Continuous AC power export at 120 kilowatts
- Synchronization with grid for live servicing
- Vehicle and telematics data collection
- 2WD/4WD capable in electric or hybrid mode
View our Class 6 and Class 5 Video to see the trucks in action.
Learn more about EDI’s Utility Program
EDI Works to Electrify the Port of San Diego
The California Energy Commission (CEC) is strongly supporting fuel-saving and greenhouse gas-reducing technologies at the state’s ports. Earlier this year, the CEC awarded “Freight Transportation Projects at California Seaports,” a grant program focused on speeding the commercialization of alternative propulsion technologies and technologies that achieve fuel savings of 40% or better.
The San Diego Port Tenants Association (SDPTA) was awarded a grant to fund the development of all-electric freight vehicles outfitted with zero-emission technologies for operation at the Port of San Diego. The grant will fund demonstration projects for medium- and heavy-duty vehicle technologies, intelligent transportation systems and technologies, and deployment of natural gas vehicles. The vehicles include industrial forklifts, cargo trucks and equipment. The intelligent transportation system will help move and monitor the vehicles.
As part of the program, EDI will be creating a series of EV port trucks, and electrifying forklift vehicle accessories. The electrified port trucks will be used to replace conventional fuel vehicles of the same specifications with 100% emissions reduction, while still maintaining the same power and performance. Electrification of the forklift will eradicate emissions by eliminating engine idling while performing standard vehicle operations in the port. The initiative will be jointly funded by the California Energy Commission through a $5.9M grant, with the balance being matched via $2.3M cash and in-kind contributions from the seven partner tenants of the SDPTA: Cemex, Continental Maritime, Dole Food Company, Harborside Refrigerated Services and Cold Storage, Marine Group Boatworks, Pasha Group, and Terminalift.
The project comes on the heels of EDI’s successful completion of a port project for the world’s busiest container port in Shanghai, China last spring. The company built a PHEV port truck for Shaanxi Automotive, capable of operating at 99,000 pounds gross vehicle weight (GVW), and included electrification of the HVAC vehicle accessories to eliminate engine idling.
Read the full release.
Global Industry Perspectives: 2017 Outlooks
The growing awareness for improved air quality continues to drive stricter mandates and regulations associated with emissions reduction in the medium and heavy duty vehicle sector across the globe. In many cases, to help drive procurement of alternative fuel vehicles, governing bodies are offering incentives to fleets to invest in fuel efficiency technologies, and cleaner-burning fuels. In a recent study by Navigant research, global annual sales of electrified powertrain medium and heavy-duty trucks are predicted to see a 10-fold growth to nearly 332,000 vehicles over the course of the next decade.
In the US, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) continue to release new rules covering greenhouse gas emissions and fuel efficiency for Medium and Heavy-duty vehicles. The regulations, aimed at reducing emissions and raising mpg in the next decade apply to vehicles spanning pickup trucks, to garbage trucks, to the largest tractor-trailer rigs and truck trailers on the road. California, considered a pioneer in efforts to conserve the environment and fight climate change, has been working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with the passage of AB-32. The state has already reached goals related to the Clean Power Plan, and is on track to reduce greenhouse gas emissions even more.
Shifting the focus to a more global overview, leaders in many countries are stepping up to support clean energy and combat climate change. As air pollution levels are significantly increasing in many cities around the world, mostly due to diesel fuel, leaders are collaborating and strategizing how to sustainably transform the transportation industry.
2016 Mayor’s Summit
Earlier this month at the Mayors Summit in Mexico City, Mayors from Paris, Mexico City, Madrid and Athens committed to taking action to secure cleaner air for their citizens and help deliver on the goals of the Paris Agreement. With this commitment, the mayors pledged to remove diesel vehicles from production by 2025 and incentivize alternative fuel options; including electric, hydrogen and hybrid vehicles. Additionally, they will urge OEMs to phase out the production of diesel vehicles over the next eight years and support a rapid transition to electric, hydrogen and hybrid vehicles.
Germany
On October 8, 2016, the German Bundesrat passed a resolution to ban the sale of internal combustion engines in the European Union by 2030. Only zero-emissions vehicles would be sold on the market after that time. On its own, the resolution has no legislative effect because EU-type approval is regulated on the EU level. However, German regulations traditionally have shaped EU policies and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe because of its large government and powerful economy.
United Kingdom
In the UK, “Doctors Against Diesel” campaigners are calling for London's mayor to start phasing out diesel vehicles from London by 2025. Although Mayor Sadiq Khan does not have complete authority to do this, he has recently announced plans to phase out "dirty" diesel double-decker buses from the capital's current bus fleet from 2018. He is also planning for all new single-decker buses operating in central London to be electric or hydrogen fuel cell and wants all London buses to meet the Ultra-Low Emissions Zone Standard by the end of 2020.
China
China, will independently of domestic policy developments in the US, further push for renewable energy, reducing coal consumption and supporting electro mobility to alleviate their current air pollution problems. Specifically related to transportation, the objective is to speed the development and roll out of more fuel-efficient cars and new energy sources. For manufacturers, China set target fuel economy standards for new cars of 5L/100km, approximately 47 miles per gallon (mpg), by 2020. The Government incentives related to reducing medium and heavy duty vehicle emissions from continue to grow annually.
As more leaders around the world join in the fight against air pollution and climate change, more stringent goals are being set. A recent report by Navigant Research provides more information on transportation trends related to Medium and Heavy Duty Hybrid, PHEV, EV, and Fuel Cell vehicles.
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