Efficient Drivetrains, Inc. (EDI), a developer high-efficiency zero emissions hybrid and electric vehicle drivetrain solutions, recently announced that it has been selected as the electric drivetrain provider for a $4.4 million program implemented by the United States Department of Energy in efforts to accelerate the adoption of advanced and alternative fuel vehicles. Combined with matching funding from other public and private entities in California, the total project funding represents an electrification program of over $9 million.
School buses continue to remain the largest mass transit segment in the country, carrying more than twice the number of passengers as the entire US transit and rail segments. Diesel vehicles expose the community and school children to toxic air contaminants, which are known to increase health risks. Upon completing the program, the result is a fleet of affordable, full electric zero-emissions buses that will eliminate thousands of pounds of particulate matter from the air, improving the health of the school children riding the buses, and the greater community.
As part of the program, EDI will be supplying its EDI PowerDrive 7000ev electric drivetrain in conjunction with its EDI Power2E exportable power solution to a leading school bus OEM to develop a fleet of zero-emissions electric-powered school buses with Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) capabilities.
The bus offers 100+ miles of all-electric zero-emissions driving, with the expected full power performance of its traditional diesel counterpart and requires no change to driver behavior to operate. Additionally, fleet managers will have access to real-time fleet tracking and vehicle diagnostics featuring the location, state of charge, and other valuable information utilizing the EDI PowerTracker telematics system.
“EDI commends the Department of Energy’s efforts to fund accelerator programs designed to expedite clean energy vehicle solutions that are deployed in real use cases and performance environments,” says Joerg Ferchau, CEO Efficient Drivetrains. “The commitment from the DOE continues to drive a positive impact. As a whole, we are continuing to see an influx of requests from the industry related to the electrification of school buses in the US. Having successfully deployed our system in leading type C and D OEM platforms, EDI is well positioned with a portfolio that helps bus manufacturers deploy electrified vehicle solutions into their product offerings rapidly.”
EDI continues to experience rapid growth and demand in the U.S. bus market due to tighter government mandates and the correlative interest bus companies have in electric fleets. In response to the increased demand, EDI offers a vehicle developers kit and support program to enable bus manufacturers to rapidly create EV vehicle solutions.
The EDI PowerDrive kit offers OEMs a robust framework for rapid EV vehicle solution development. Electrification kits include a high-efficiency drivetrain (EDI PowerDrive), vehicle control and telematics software (EDI PowerSuite), and the training and support infrastructure to enable quicker time to market in offering EV vehicles. OEMs can also further customize their vehicle solutions with EDI’s Electric Power Export (EDI Power2E) option—the capability to export a range of power directly from the vehicle for use in disaster recovery, tool operation, and V2G applications.
By integrating EDI’s drivetrain and vehicle control technology into school bus platforms, OEMs have the ability to build fleets with zero-emissions vehicles while enjoying a significant reduction in fuel costs and ownership costs.
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