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may 4, 2016 act expo
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Welcome to ACT Expo 2016 Penske Sponsors Gala Dinner First-ever ACT Expo Fleet Awards tonight. —Page 3
UPS for Clean Vehicles Carlton Rose lays out the company’s vision. —Page 4
First Priority GreenFleet New alt fuel vehicle company is a ‘one-stop shop.’ —Page 4
Bauer Adds Quiet Compressor The C23-powered, low-decibel M-Series Q. —Page 6
Agility’s New CEO Speaks Out NGVs remain a good bet, says Kathleen Ligocki. —Page 10
BYD Sells Battery Buses Antelope Valley Transit commits to 85. —Pages 11 & 12
ChargePoint Fleet Focus A new EV charging station and fleet plan. —Page 12
CNGci Gets Canada Approvals New market for largediameter Type IIIs.
—Page 13
Nohm Battery Bus Debuts Here Mass Production in China for ‘price parity.’ —Page 18 Distribution Sponsored by
—Page 17
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Love’s Loves CNG, and Trillium Love’s Travel Stops veteran Bill Cashmareck, now the general manager for Trillium CNG, unveiled the new CNG identity at the ACT Expo 2016 opening reception yesterday evening. Love’s Travel Stops, which operates 340 locations in 39 states, was already establishing a network of CNG fueling outlets along major
Bill Cashmareck
interstate corridors when earlier this year it acquired Trillium CNG, a specialist in high-throughput compressed natural gas fueling stations. “The acquisition of Trillium CNG provides Love’s with a great opportunity to leverage the very best of two companies,” Love’s coCEO Frank Love said in announcing the deal. “Trillium’s established network The Love’s Gemini division hauls petroleum fuels using CNG tractors.
of CNG locations and its deep expertise within the industry will also allow Love’s to serve new types of customers in new markets while expanding reach to existing customers,” he said. The joint company is exhibiting at Booth 1165. Trillium’s Bill Zobel will discuss Moving to Mainstream Commercial Operations at the Advancing the Transportation Infrastructure Needs of Today and the Future session in Room 204 at 2:30pm today.
RNG + Near Zero = Game Changer Heavy duty vehicles with well-towheel emissions levels approaching nil are possible today given the combination of new “Near Zero” engine technology from Cummins Westport and the use of RNG – renewable natural gas. A new Game Changer white paper commissioned by the South Coast Air Quality Management
District and half a dozen privatesector sponsors details the possibilities. The document was released here yesterday. Visit Us at Booth #1165 —More on & See Our Ad on Page 5 Page 17
New Look. New Future.
lll
Behind-the-Cab, but way ahead of the curve.
Introducing the NEW 2016 Agility ® Behind-the-Cab 160 DGE CNG fuel system. At Agility, we pack more into less. Our flagship 160 DGE fuel system is the most recognized in the industry, utilizing every inch possible to increase rail space and setting the bar for maximum performance, durability and safety. • More compact: Mounted up to six inches closer to the cab, it offers improved aerodynamics and more available rail space • Less weight: At only 2,150 lbs., it’s the lightest in the industry • Faster fills: Up to 13% faster than the competition • Max durability: Aircraft grade aluminum structure mounted on rubber isolators to reduce stress on components • Best finish: Pretreated aluminum covers painted at our world-class, automated automotive-grade paint facility • Most reliable: Track-tested for 1 million miles, an industry first Our latest Behind-the-Cab 160 DGE CNG fuel system gets the most out of the least space, which means more miles and more uptime for your fleet.
Leading the way to a cleaner future. Agi l i t y fs . com
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Welcome Back to Long Beach On behalf of Gladstein, Neandross & Associates (Booth 1353), producers of the 2016 Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo, I’d like to extend to you all a very warm welcome back to the great seaside city of Long Beach (an operator of CNG and battery-electric buses, street sweepers powered by bio-based LNG, and work vehicles fueled with renewable diesel). It is with pride, excitement and enthusiasm that we kick-off this year’s ACT Expo. We look forward to highlighting milestones, celebrating achievements and shining a spotlight on clean fleet efforts and deployments from throughout the year, across the country and around the globe. This year’s show is packed full of the latest and greatest advanced transportation technologies and clean fuels. Adding to an always strong presence from the natural gas and propane industries, half of this year’s show floor is filled with exciting electric drive technologies. In addition, emergent fuels like renewable diesel and hydrogen fuel cell technologies are here in full force. Beyond clean fuels and drivelines, this year’s ACT Expo will see an even greater emphasis than ever on the management and efficiency technologies that can reduce fuel use and pollution. Telematics, autonomous and connected technologies will be addressed in more than half a dozen conference sessions. The North American Council for Freight Efficiency held a workshop here yesterday, as did the California Hydrogen Business Council and Natural Gas Vehicles for America. Business for Social Responsibility is hosting the Future of Fuels Spring Forum on Thursday. BSR will unveil the “Fuel Tool,” designed with UPS, Walmart, PepsiCo and Coca-Cola to provide fleet owners and managers with credible data to compare the climate impacts, sustainability challenges and trade-offs, and best practices for the fuels they use –
and are considering using. Also on Thursday, the California Air Resources Board, California Energy Commission and Caltrans will discuss the highly anticipated Sustainable Freight Action Plan. The elephant in the room? Erik Neandross The low cost of oil. It’s made for consolidation, revised business plans, gnashing of teeth. Yet new fleets continue to embrace alternatives. Low cost oil has made for leaner and meaner operations and a wealth of advances in alternative fuel handling and dispensing equipment, and the technology to better keep track if it all. As we’ve done in prior years, we’re looking to deliver the tools and information fleets need to make responsible investment decisions in advanced clean transportation technologies. As we see every year, business gets done here at ACT Expo. New truck orders are placed and fueling agreements signed. These deals are why we do what we do. Thanks to our friends and colleagues at ShowTimes for synthesizing the many exciting announcements, product details, photos and company news from across the board here at ACT Expo. This daily digest of happenings at the show is your guide to the sessions and show floor. We look forward to hearing stories and feedback from your own ACT Expo experience. Welcome to the 2016 ACT Expo. Erik Neandross, CEO Gladstein, Neandross & Associates
Penske Sponsors First-Ever Fleet Awards Publisher Kirk Fetzer 415-385-0987; Kirk@CTNPublishing.com Editor Rich Piellisch 415-305-9050; Piellisch@FleetsandFuels.com
Writer Scott Gourley
Copy Editor Gail Gourley
Production Artist Advertising Managers Ariel Fristoe Nancy O’Brien, Brien O’Brien News Coverage by Fleets & Fuels www.fleetsandfuels.com
Printed by: Pacific West Litho, Anaheim, CA ShowTimes is published live at the ACT Expo 2016 by Convention & Trade Show News. Advertising Department: (415) 979-1414 Editorial Department: (415) 896-5988 www.ShowTimesDaily.com © Copyright 2016 by Convention & Trade Show News. All rights reserved. Material in this publication may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
Penske Truck Leasing, which weighs into ACT Expo 2016 as a Platinum Sponsor, is also the sole sponsor for the first-ever ACT Expo Fleet Awards and Fleet Awards Dinner, which kicks off tonight at 6:30. On the conference side, • Tom Scollard, Penske Logistics dedicated contract carriage VP and customer Mike Cullen, senior VP for distribution at Wegmans, will take part in the ACT Expo 2016 Shippers & Carriers Driving Clean Fuel Investment and Sustainability General Session in the Grand Ballroom this morning; • Russ Scaramastra, Penske strategic initiatives VP, will moderate the Driving the Future of Transit and Mobility session at 2:30pm in Room 101 today; • Matt Krasney, Penske fuel strategy director, will moderate the Over-the-Road Fleet Success Stories session at 4:00pm in Room 103 today; and • Drew Cullen, Penske fuels and facility services senior VP, will participate in the Achieving Corporate Sustainability Goals: Zeroing in on Transportation
executive roundtable session at 9:00am Thursday in the Grand Ballroom. Penske is showing a CNG-fueled Freightliner Cascadia tractor from its rental fleet in Booth 1345. CNG-fueled Freightliner Cascadia is one of hundreds in the Penske fleet.
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Looking Beyond Petroleum Prices Attendees at ACT 2016 represent a single community with some unfinished business. That was the message offered yesterday afternoon by Carlton Rose, global fleet maintenance and engineering president at UPS. The community’s unfinished business divides into three main areas: expectation, innovation, and collaboration, he said. Rose provided a UPS perspective in each of these Carlton Rose of UPS areas, in the stated hope that some of the messages, lessons and observations would help to advance interests and needs across the assembled audience. “UPS moves 6% of the U.S. GDP and 2% of the global GDP through our network on a daily basis,” he said. “We’re a company that operates 100,000 vehicles and more than 500 aircraft. We have 435,000 employees who live and work in 220 countries and territories. We’re a company
with a significant global footprint that feels an obligation to customers, to consumers and to communities. “We’re all in,” he added. As part of that impressive presence, he noted that UPS operates one of the industry’s largest alternative fuel and advanced technology fleets, including all-electric, hybrid electric, hydraulic hybrid, propane, CNG and LNG designs. “In all, that’s more than 6,800 vehicles,” he said, adding that those vehicles have logged 505 million miles in the U.S. and countries around the world to date and that the company has a goal “to hit 1 billion miles by the end of next year.” Turning toward the topic of innovation across the advanced technologies, Rose asserted that UPS is confident that natural gas will be “a long term play,” as evidenced by the company’s investments since 2000, including: 825 CNG
First Priority GreenFleet’s display includes two battery electric vehicles, plus a propane pickup and a CNG Chevy Cruze.
First Priority GreenFleet Debuts Here
Offers An Array of Alt Fuel Options to Fleet Managers First Priority GreenFleet is making its ACT Expo debut at Booth 1453 – and announcing this morning a new alliance with Icom North America. New Jersey-based GreenFleet is a unit of First Priority Global, which earlier this year purchased the assets of Electric Vehicles International in Stockton, Calif., and said the acquisition would help the company position itself as a “one stop shop” for advanced vehicle solutions – more than just EVs. “Under the GreenFleet banner, we intend to offer our customers a full range of zero- and lowemission options that will allow them to select the products that best fit their needs,” said First 4
Priority GreenFleet CEO Alex Cherepakov. GreenFleet is partnering with EV Connect for electric vehicle charging. The standout EVI customer is UPS, which began taking delivery from EVI, in 2012, of 100% battery-electric, Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp-base vehicles, with UQM drivelines and lithium iron phosphate batteries from Valence Technology. Other EVI customers include Frito-Lay and the Pacific Gas & Electric utility. Icom North America (Booth 823), best known for its JTG II liquid injection and related propane autogas systems (the company has some 600 certifications), has itself
tractors, 1,635 CNG package cars, and 18 fueling stations; 1,300 LNG tractors and 15 fueling stations; 1,000 propane package cars; 62 ethanol package cars in Brazil; and 19 RNG tractors in the United Kingdom. UPS is also exploring ways to get more out of traditional fuels, ranging from a waste engine heat recovery process to the redesign of 125 existing electric hybrid vehicles. Rose pointed to a Tuesday morning UPS announcement that the company will be installing new two-cylinder engines that further increases range, performance and fuel efficiency. The new BMW engine may be seen on a Workhorse chassis at Booth 1745. Extending his gaze “over the horizon,” Rose expressed great hope for both lithium air batteries and hydrogen fuel cells. “We’re all a part of the innovation ecosystem,” he said. “And like any ecosystem, to stay healthy, we must continue to evolve. To do that we must see above and beyond the unpredictability of petroleum prices. We have an incredible opportunity. By working together… we can create a stronger, more efficient industry and complete our unfinished business.”
broadened its scope. Icom last year formed Green Bridge Technologies to market CNG vehicles developed by Crazy Diamond Performance. CDP is one of the only options for natural gas versions of such compact GM vehicle as the Chevy Cruze. GreenFleet’s ACT Expo display reflects its growing reach. In addition to an EVI battery truck, it includes a CNG-fueled Chevy Cruze by GBT-Crazy Diamond, a Chevy Silverado 3500 pickup with an Icom liquid injection propanegasoline bi-fuel system, and an all-battery, zeroemissions eLion school bus with 100-mile range. Icom North America’s display features a propane-gasoline bi-fuel Ford Explorer with 3.5-liter Ecoboost engine. Stockton, Calif-based EVI became a First Priority GreenFleet affiliate earlier this year.
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VISIT US AT
BOOTH
# 1165
NEW LOOK. NEW FUTURE. TRILLIUM CNG.
NO MATTER WHAT SECTOR YOU’RE WORKING IN, TRILLIUM CNG AND LOVE’S HAVE YOU COVERED.
www.TrilliumCNG.com www.Loves.com/CNG
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Bauer Launching New Quiet Compressor Bauer Compressors (Booth 1335) is taking the occasion of ACT Expo 2016 to introduce a new quiet CNG compressor, the C23 M-Series Q. The unit is “Whisper Quiet,” Bauer says – emitting just 65 decibels. The new M-Series units feature Bauer’s high inlet-pressure compressor driven by a 50-horsepower motor. A new-design cabinet with improved sound insulation makes the M-Series Q “perfect for the smaller station installed in or around densely populated areas where low noise and visual appeal is of the utmost
importance,” Bauer says. Bauer offers a family of six compressed natural gas solutions ranging from 7.5-horsepower units which deliver 9 standard cubic feet per minute (4.5 gasoline gallon equivalents per hour) for small fleets, up to 350-horsepower packages delivering 875 scfm – 438 GGE per hour – for large fleets and public stations. Bauer also offers equipment for LNG/ liquefied natural gas boil-off recovery. Bauer is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year.
The innards and outside of Bauer’s new C23 M Series Q.
Toyota Prius C Cars for Best Buy: 1,000 Hybrids as New ‘Geekmobile’ Best Buy is to deploy more than 1,000 Toyota Prius C hybrids as the new “Geekmobile” for the retailer’s Geek Squad home service technicians. “An armada of agents is about to roll out,” Toyota said last month, noting that the Geek Squad logs “an estimated 12.6 million miles (or roughly 20.3 million kilometers, 100.8 million furlongs or 4.2 million leagues)… making the hip hatch’s EPA estimated city fuel economy of 53 mpg particularly attractive.” Toyota is at Booth 1310. More than 700 Prius C cars are to be deployed initially with the remainder phased in by year-end. “The new, greener Geekmobile will cut the Geek Squad fleet’s emissions by 50%,” Best Buy says.
N.A. Repower’s DT466 Is Certified The California Air Resources Board has certified North American Repower’s dedicated-natural gas, spark-ignition version of the 7.6-liter International DT466 engine Class 5-8 trucks and buses, the Southern California company reports. “This is the first full certification for a dedicated heavy duty CNG engine repower specifically designed as a retrofit that CARB has issued,” states a release. The N.A. Repower system includes a fully remanufactured DT466 engine, CNG fuel tanks, fill panel and installation, and is backed by a full warranty for up to four years and 200,000 miles. Finance and leasing solutions are available for fleets. Warranties are administered through Premium 2000. Booth 447.
Landi Renzo Certifies Ford 6.8L
From Quebec to California on CNG! Taavi Rutishauser on the Long Beach Convention Center concourse with the CNG-fueled Freightliner Cascadia 113 he drove here from Montreal. It is one of 100 such CNG vehicles being furnished 6
to C.A.T. – Canadian American Transportation – by Ryder Systems via a full service link agreement announced in late 2014. The trucks have CNG fuel systems by Quantum.
Landi Renzo USA has secured both U.S. EPA and California Air Resources Board certification of its natural gasfueled version of Ford’s 6.8-liter engine for model year 2016. The V-10 powers vehicles including F650/750 series and F-53/59 chassis trucks. “Continuing with a tradition of quality products available from Landi Renzo, our 6.8L V-10 heavy duty CNG system has been developed by some of the world’s leading alternative fuel engineers and is available exclusively through Landi Renzo USA’s ship-thru partnerships and certified installation network,” the company says. Booth 945.
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From the moment you take delivery of a Hino INSIGHT equipped connected vehicle, you’re on the road to more uptime and lower operating costs. Hino INSIGHT combines Telematics, Remote Diagnostics and Case Management in an industry first platform that puts critical vehicle and driver management tools at your fingertips. Ask for a demo or visit hino.com to see how INSIGHT will put you ahead of the game.
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Toyota Promotes CNG Car-Hauler Designed & Built in Collaboration with Peterbilt, Cottrell, Agility Toyota Fleet is showing Toyota Transport’s first CNG-fueled car-hauler – laden with such advanced technology Toyota vehicles as the hydrogen fuel cell Mirai, a Camry hybrid, a RAV4 Hybrid, a Prius and five Lexus models – at Booth 1805. “We started exploring the CNG option more than three years ago, and it has been worth the wait,” Toyota Transport senior compliance analyst Kirk Welch said in publicizing the vehicle this past November. The truck has a Peterbilt 365 day cab tractor (with 11.9-liter ISX12 G engine by Cummins Westport; Booth 832) modified for CNG operation in league with Cottrell Trailers (Gainesville, Ga.). Agility Fuel Systems (Booth 1045) helped
with a design that allows for continued use of a nine-car trailer with an over-the-cab head rack. It’s the first full car-hauler trailer with head rack that Cottrell has manufactured onto a CNG truck, Toyota says. “This was a first for Toyota Logistics but also for Cottrell,” said Cottrell western regional sales manager Adam Strong. “We were able to work with Peterbilt and Agility
Fuel Systems to alter the design of our headrack to accommodate the natural gas tanks while still maximizing payload.” The Agility design employs Type IV CNG cylinders from Hexagon Lincoln affording fuel storage of 90 diesel gallon equivalents – 45 DGEs per side.
Icom for Connecticut AAA Tow Truck Fleet ‘Grandma & Grandpa’– the ninth battery bus out of 50 – is on display at Booth 1433.
Phoenix Zeus Bus for L&R Phoenix MotorCars, which offers the 100% battery electric Zeus (for zero emissions utility shuttle) bus, is showing one of 50 vehicles for the Los Angeles-based L&R Group at Booth 1433. In addition to WallyPark, L&R operates airport parking services under the Joe’s Airport Parking and Joe’s Auto Parks brands, and according to Phoenix will deploy the 14-passenger battery buses at the Los Angeles, San Diego and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta international airports. All 50 buses will have fast-charging capability, “which allows full charging to take place in less than three hours,” Phoenix says. Each is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 60 tons of carbon dioxide per year. “We provide our clients with sizable savings in fueling and maintenance costs, making us a great solution for our customers,” said Phoenix president Steven Davis. “L&R is a forward-thinking company that’s making a difference in the airport and parking industry,” he said. Phoenix notes that L&R’s operations include airport parking facilities in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Newark, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Diego and Seattle. Phoenix also offers battery electric flatbed and utility trucks. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dubai-based Al Yousuf LLC.
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Icom North America, which claims upwards of 600 certifications for propane autogas vehicle upfits using its JTG II and related systems, is providing equipment for a pioneering fleet of propane-powered service trucks operated by Connecticut’s West Hartford AAA. “It’s not only the first AAA fleet but the first tow trucks to go propane in the U.S. as well,” says West Hartford AAA manager Glenn Chamberland. Five trucks are in service with a total of a dozen planned by year-end. By the end of 2017, the entire West Hartford AAA fleet of 28 vehicles will be propane-powered, Chamberland told Fleets & Fuels. The fleet is mostly Ford F-250 trucks with the 6.2-liter V-8 engine, he says. The first propane-fueled tow truck based on the Ford F-450 chassis, with 6.8-liter V-10 engine, will be introduced this summer. West Hartford AAA will phase out its existing Dodge and Hino flatbeds in favor of Ford F-650s Icom North America is supplying propanenext year, Chamberland says. gasoline bi-fuel systems for service trucks The fleet logs from 1.4 miloperated by West Hartford AAA. lion to 1.6 million miles per year, he adds, noting that West Hartford AAA is currently paying $1.21 per gallon for propane autogas. CNG/compressed natural gas is going for about $2.42 per gallon in his area, he says. The new vehicles have Icom propane-gasoline bi-fuel systems installed by Cusson Automotive in South Windsor, Conn. Hocon Gas, which has half a dozen Connecticut locations and operates its own fleet of propane-powered service trucks, is supplying the propane autogas fuel. Hocon and Cusson jointly support regional school bus and commercial fleets. Icom North America is at Booth 823.
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FORWARD ENGINEERING #HexagOnOnBOard
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Interview with Kathleen Ligocki, CEO of Agility Fuel Systems Agility Fuel Systems is now more than five years old – what’s changed? Agility Fuel Systems has experienced tremendous growth over the last five years. We joined two very innovative predecessor companies to create the leader in natural gas fuel systems in the North American market today. We offer products that are designed and engineered for durability, performance and safety. With over 30,000 vehicles on the road our experience in the industry is unparalleled. But clearly that is not the end game. Our company continues to evolve from a custom shop assembler to a fully integrated manufacturer of state-of-the-art fuel systems… the next phase of our quest is to be the best world-class supplier in this industry.
Agility CEO Kathleen Ligocki with a CNG-fueled Freightliner Cascadia at Booth 1045. The truck has a 160-DGE Agility back-of-cab fuel system, integrated with the ECU to allow Cummins Insite diagnostics of both the engine and CNG fuel system.
Is this the reason why you opened the new facility in North Carolina? Yes, we have committed significant capital to construct a new green field facility in Salisbury, N.C. allowing us to insource all key manufacturing processes including OEM class paint capabilities, fabrication, assembly and vehicle integration. We are very pleased with our progress in launching our North Carolina plant and we believe it positions Agility to continue to lead the transition to natural gas in the transportation industry. How is your joint venture with Hexagon Composites working out? The relationship with Hexagon Composites is a strong one. In fact, we are celebrating two years since we created the joint venture with Hexagon to manufacture cylinders. Our objective was to gain economies of scale and to jointly develop innovative new products more quickly. This week at ACT Expo, we are presenting a new 27- inch diameter cylinder that will increase our flagship behind-the-cab system from a capacity of 160 to 175 diesel gallon equivalents while maintaining the same dimensional characteristics. This new product introduction is a great example of how this joint venture is showing outstanding results. Last year you also signed a collaboration agreement with Cummins – can you provide us with an update? Cummins is both an outstanding strategic partner and a long-term investor in Agility. During our year of collaboration, we have focused together on driving the adoption of natural gas by improving uptime and product performance. We have started this process by training and certifying 30 Cummins distributors as Agility 10
Authorized Service Providers, which will significantly improve our nationwide service coverage. We will also distribute parts through the Cummins network to improve parts availability and uptime for our customers. On the product performance side, at ACT Expo we will present our first prototype of an Agility fuel system utilizing a Cummins ECU, allowing service technicians to use the Cummins INSITE tool to diagnose both the engine and the fuel system. We are very excited by the suite of advanced features that this connection between the engine and the fuel system will provide our customers in the near future. How do see the see the natural gas vehicle market in a scenario of low oil and diesel prices? We are firm believers in the long-term future of
natural gas commercial vehicles driven by both economic and environmental factors. On the economic front, our customers purchase a commercial vehicle for five to 15 years, a long-term fleet commitment. The price of oil fluctuates wildly versus natural gas, a stable and abundant fuel source. Many of our customers have invested in fuel stations, allowing them to purchase gas wholesale at rates still below the price of diesel. While we do not have a crystal ball, we do believe that the equilibrium price of oil is closer to $75/barrel making natgas purchases a prudent decision. On the environmental front, NGVs can make a substantial impact in terms of reducing greenhouse gases which negatively affect global warming, while also reducing NOx emissions, the main contributor to smog in urban areas. Certain segments of the market, particularly in the refuse and transit industry, have continued their commitment to transition their fleets to natural gas vehicles, as these companies recognize the environmental and societal benefits NGVs provide in the communities they serve. In the heavy truck segment, where shorterterm return on investment calculations can be critical, this year we have noted fleet operators and OEMs balancing natgas with diesel. Still, we see many examples of great companies with broader environmental strategies and long-term fleet perspectives continuing to reduce their environmental footprint by switching to NGVs. We at Agility are very excited with the prospects of natural gas vehicles transforming the heavy duty transportation industry and our role in providing solutions for a more sustainable future for generations to come.
Agility provided the fuel systems as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles made NGV history last year with a $40 million investment in 179 Detroit-based parts-haulers for FCA Transport. The tandem axle day cab Peterbilt 579 tractors have Type IV CNG cylinders by Hexagon Lincoln in back-of-cab Agility assemblies. Each holds 160 diesel gallon equivalents of natural gas affording a single-fill range of more than 600 miles. TruStar Energy (Booth 745) provided a CNG fueling facility for the Fiat Chrysler fleet.
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China-based BYD notched an historic deal this year when the Antelope Valley Transit Authority north of Los Angeles moved to become America’s first all-electric transit fleet. In February, the AVTA board approved a measure to invest some $72.4 million in as many as 85 all-battery buses to be built at BYD’s new facility in Lancaster, Calif. – the former Rexall R.V. factory. AVTA is to deploy the first 29 battery buses this year – 13 of BYD’s new 60-foot articulated battery buses and 16 all-electric 45-foot commuter coaches, accounting for about $29.1 million of the board-approved outlay. In total, the agency has ordered 14 articulated 60-foot buses, 35 of BYD’s 45-foot highway coaches, and 36 standard 40-foot battery buses from BYD. AVTA will use a combination of depot conductive and in-route wireless/WEVC inductive charging. Two 50-kilowatt inductive chargers from Utah’s Wave are being installed. The 60-footers have 540-kilowatt-hour lithium iron phosphate battery packs – also by BYD – and the 45-foot coaches have 390-kilowatthour packs, says BYD VP Macy Neshati. BYD makes its own lithium batteries and all of the buses come with onboard chargers. “The actual device that charges the bus is on the bus,” BYD’s Neshati says, noting that BYD includes the AC units as part of the vehicle price. In addition, BYD is supplying “a smart box” charging interface for each vehicle. Wired together for overnight conductive charging of the AVTA fleet in Lancaster, they will optimize charging, allowing the most depleted buses to be automatically charged first after drivers connect them to the system – a feature that will be critically important as the fleet and electricity demand grows. AVTA has floated an RFP for more powerful inductive charging units to be installed at as many as 15 in-route sites. “We’re looking at 250 kilowatts,” says executive director Len Engel (bids are due May 10). AVTA will also be buying inductive receiving units to be installed on the initial buses. Engel says AVTA has budgeted approximately $3.5 million to cover the cost of charging infrastructure for its first 50 battery buses. BYD’s Neshati notes that while the AVTA order for 85 battery buses is the standout for BYD North America, the three-year-old company is to deliver the first of three dozen 45-foot low-floor vehicles for the Denver Mall this summer, and also has an order for ten vehicles from Long Beach Transit (which is also to use Wave wireless charging). Upwards of two dozen additional BYD battery buses are on order from municipalities and
universities in California, Maryland, Missouri, Oregon, Washington State and Alberta – where the city of St. Albert, near Edmonton, recently ordered the first three for Canada. Even more recently, Link Transit, in Wenatchee, Wash., has ordered four 35-foot BYD K9S battery buses.
ACT EXPO 2016
BYD Notches Its Biggest U.S. Battery Bus Sale As of March 1 of this year, BYD bus fleets had notched more than 100 million miles in revenue service and have been evaluated by more than 150 cities in 36 countries BYD (Booth 1731) stands for “Build Your Dreams.”
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ChargePoint Is Doing More for Fleets Networked EVSE (electric vehicle supply equipment) provider ChargePoint announced its new CPF25 charging station and upgrades to its Fleet Plan here yesterday. “The new offerings enhance ChargePoint’s fleet solutions, meeting the charging needs of every fleet and shared-use scenario, from campuses and government sharing programs to large commercial fleets,” the company says. EVs offer lower fueling, operating and maintenance costs as compared with traditional gasoline vehicles. That’s why “EV fleet vehicles are increasingly joining the 430,000 EVs driven by consumers on U.S. roads to not only help combat climate change but to also improve transportation economics for their owners,” ChargePoint says. “We are seeing forward-thinking organizations making the transition,” says CEO Pasquale Romano. “Adopting EV platforms simply makes sense for any fleet manager.” His company’s new CPF25 station is a fully networked, 32-amp, Level 2 charging station
with RFID card/smartphone reader authentication, robust Wi-Fi, and SAE J1772 connector. ChargePoint’s updated Fleet Plan, for use in conjunction with the CPF25, • maximizes station utilization with realtime information for drivers and fleet operators on which stations are in use or available and what their historical utilization patterns are; • optimizes vehicle utilization with real-time information on the charging location; • saves money and energy with such features as scheduled charging to allow charging to coincide with the lowest cost energy rates, and the ability to lower installation costs by stretching existing electrical infrastructure with panel sharing technology; and • supports fleet drivers 24/7 “so fleet operators don’t have to,” the company says. ChargePoint (Booth 1512) has also introduced
ChargePoint’s new CPF25 features ‘a rugged, easy to mount, compact and attractive case rated for indoor or outdoor use.’
the ChargePoint Fleet Card for operators wanting to use public infrastructure.
BYD for SunLine SunLine Transit has taken a 14-month lease on three 40-foot all-battery buses from BYD (Booth 1731). “BYD has demonstrated that its electric bus technology is reliable and can meet the needs SunLine has for service routes,” said agency GM Lauren Skiver. Should SunLine decide to buy the buses, it will realize “a return on its investment with cost savings over the lifetime of the bus.” “Our BYD electric buses provide a multitude of benefits from reduced operational costs, including significant fuel savings, cleaner air due to no tailpipe emissions, and less noise pollution, making for a more comfortable ride for both bus operator and passenger,” said BYD coach and bus VP Macy Neshati. SunLine expects 155 miles of singlecharge range. SunLine Transit, which serves some 3.5 million passengers per year in the Palm Springs area east of Los Angeles, is taking three all-battery buses from BYD. BYD is also showing here, for the first time, an all-electric prototype delivery truck for UPS fitted with BYD batteries and driveline.
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CNGci Wins Canada Approvals CNG Cylinders International reports approval of its Type III CNG fuel cylinders in British Columbia (Canadian Registration Number R2348.15) and Ontario (CRN R2348.5), substantially broadening its market penetration.
CNGci customers include Mainstay Fuel Technologies, which uses the big Type IIIs for both back-of-cab and rail-mounted fuel system assemblies.
CNGci (Booth 634) continues to promote its large Type III, carbon fiberon-aluminum cylinders – with diameters of 23 and 25 inches – for their superior heat dissipation when fueling, “allowing for significantly more gas and thus more usable DGE in the cylinder under fast-fill conditions, which is an industry game-changer.” CNGci uses seamlessly forged AL6061 liners with an aerospace-grade carbon fiber full body overwrap. Aluminum billets yield “a stronger, superior product,” the company says. CNGci’s 93.5-inch tank can hold 49.2 DGEs under fast-fill conditions. The company is based in Oxnard, Calif.
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Ford AFVs at ACT Expo Ford is showing its 2017 Fusion Energi – a plugin hybrid electric vehicle – and its lightweight military-grade aluminum F-150 Super Duty pickup at Booth 1110. As announced at ACT Expo 2015 in Dallas, the F-150 is available with gaseous-prep V-6 or V-8 engines allowing for easy conversion to natural gas or propane autogas fuel. The F-150 for 2017 is shown here.
WORKHORSE
Range-Extended Electric Vehicles Low Total Cost-of-Owership ■ 400% Fuel Efficiency Gains ■ Reduced Maintenance Costs 650cc; 2-cylinder Range-Extender
Direct-Drive Electric Motor Replaces the Transmission
Panasonic 18650 Li-Ion Cells
Come See the Workhorse E-GEN Chassis at Booth #1745 Twitter @ShowTimesAFV • www.ShowTimesDaily.com • Convention & Trade Show News • May 4, 2016
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ACT EXPO 2016
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Luxfer Launches Lighter Type IV CNG Cylinder
InsightFuel Born of SSP/AFV InsightFuel, a new company combining SSP and AFV Natural Gas Fuel Systems, is promoting its expertise for CNG fueling stations and natural gas vehicles at ACT Expo. The company, founded by Jeff King, offers the tubing, conduit, fittings, filters, regulators and valves needed to make NGVs and CNG stations a practical reality. InsightFuel (Booth 760) also includes CNG Plus, a construction services business that helps
Need tubing? Conduit? Fittings? Valves? InsightFuel has them for NGVs and for NGV fueling stations.
contractors build CNG stations “faster and safer with new materials and methods.” “We’re going to reach smaller light duty and medium duty fleet operators throughout the U.S.,” King said. “Through this three-pronged approach, we can make the largest positive impact on the environment by expanding the market to create new operators of clean fuel fleets.”
Luxfer has begun shipping new Gen2 Type IV CNG cylinders to customers in the trash truck, Class 8 heavy duty truck and medium duty truck sectors. A Freightliner tractor with a 94 diesel gallon equivalent McNeilus NGen CNG fuel system is shown here.
At ANGI Energy Systems we are true believers and activists in making CNG go from an alternative fuel to a standard viable fuel source for all NGV markets. With over 30 years of experience and a leader in the industry, we provide innovative refueling system solutions for all of your needs.
The Gen2 cylinders are equipped with Luxfer’s proprietary G-Flo valves for faster filling and more usable gas. “The combination of our higher-volume, lighter-weight cylinders and our unique valve technology should help relieve end-user ‘range anxiety’ about CNG-powered vehicles,” Lawday said. Luxfer (Booth 653) also offers G-Stor Pro brand Type III CNG cylinders with aluminum liners.
WE ARE THE FUTURE OF FUEL TODAY.
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Luxfer Gas Cylinders is launching its longawaited “Gen2 G-Stor Go” brand CNG fuel cylinder here this week, offering an all-composite, all-carbon fiber tank that’s lighter and has a larger capacity than its first-generation Type IV cylinder, which was introduced at ACT Expo 2014. “We’ve increased the volume by 9% and reduced the weight by 15%,” says Luxfer alternative fuel business development director Mark Lawday. For a truck with a back-of-cab CNG cylinder assembly, the improvement could add from 70 to 120 miles between fills, he says. “When compared to conventional competitive hybrid carbon-fiberglass cylinders, the DGE volume improvement increases to 14% and the weight savings grows to 30%,” Luxfer says. “We’re seeing that level of improvement across our entire range,” Lawday told Fleets & Fuels. Gen2 G-Stor Go cylinders with diameters of 22 to 27 inches are available. Lengths range from 40 to 140 inches. The new tanks feature a new polymer liner and a patented boss design for “the highest level of liner performance and gas retention.”
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ANGI Unveils Encore CNG Dispenser ANGI Energy Systems is unveiling its Encore CNG dispensers at ACT 2016. The products reflect the result of joint development efforts between ANGI & Gilbarco Veeder-Root, the leader in petroleum fueling. Encore has had a long pedigree in the gasoline and diesel fueling markets with a good reputation for reliability. The new CNG dispensers offer virtually all the options available on the company’s petroleum product line, including multiple screen options, EMV compatibility
and Apple Pay. The CNG portions of the dispenser offer similar flexibility with sequencing and buffer fill options and multiple hose configurations. Company representatives cited “a recognized need for a reliable and highperformance dispensing solution with CRIND capabilities that also capitalizes on ANGI’s decades of innovation in the CNG dispenser and compression business.” In developing the new product, ANGI started with its reliable Series II CNG controller, which includes the company’s CNG filling algorithm. Applied engineering produced a design utilizing 1” tubing and full port ball valves to provide reduced pressure drop and increasing flow rates. Rigorous component and system testing was completed before approximately 20 field trial units were built and sold. Subsequent field trials have yielded tens of thousands of successful transactions, validating ANGI’s charter. Production units for the USA and Canada will be offered for delivery in late Q3 or early Q4 2016.
Get Closer to Zero
ANGI’s new Encore CNG dispenser.
INTRODUCING
The ISL G Near Zero natural gas engine meets California near zero emission levels, with a 90% reduction in NOx versus 2010 EPA standards. Features include a maintenance-free Three-Way Catalyst and Closed Crankcase Ventilation that improves greenhouse gas emissions. Fuelling the ISL G Near Zero with renewable natural gas or RNG also offers a significant greenhouse gas reduction. Available for new transit and truck applications, as well as repowers of existing vehicles, the ISL G Near Zero offers the lowest cost Near Zero emissions clean technology. Visit us at Booth #832 to learn more.
Cummins Westport The Natural Choice
cumminswestport.com
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RNG in California: More Than You Think
Biomethane Now Has More Than Half the Market, Says CARB New figures from the California Air Resources Board indicate that, as of the end of 2015, approximately half of the natural gas being used as a vehicle fuel in the state is bio-based RNG/renewable natural gas, aka biomethane. Only 10% of the state’s NGV fuel consumption was bio-based
in 2013, rising to 22% in 2014. Not all of the state’s NGV fuel is reported but even with the caveat, RNG accounted for more than half of the fuel for NGVs in the state last year. “Nationally it’s close to 35% RNG” as a
percentage of the fuel consumed by NGVs, says David Cox, operations director at the Sacramentobased Renewable Natural Gas Coalition. “We’ve been firing on all cylinders as an industry,” he told Fleets & Fuels. The 50% mark in California, he says, was reached in the third quarter of 2015. According to CARB, some 10.2 million diesel gallon equivalents of natural gas were used as a vehicle fuel in California in 2013. The tally grew to 27 million DGEs in 2014 and 68.1 million last year, a growth rate of about 250% per year. The total for the fourth quarter of 2015 was 19.6 million DGEs. Put another way, 57% of the natural gas delivered for NGVs in California during the fourth quarter of 2015 was RNG. “Bottom line,” says one Fleets & Fuels source: “There is a huge amount of RNG being used in the market. The LCFS is working really well. Super low carbon fuel is being used more and more. That’s a really good thing.” The leading supplier of RNG in California is Clean Energy Fuels (Booth 667), which offers the product under the brandname “Redeem” as both LNG and CNG. UPS is a major customer. Clean Energy also supplies Santa Monica’s highly visible Big Blue Bus with Redeem brand biomethane.
American Public Gas Association, NGVAmerica, and American Gas Association presenting sponsors of the
Ruan, one of the first fleets to use RNG from Fair Oaks Farms, will continue to fuel at AmpCNG’s three stations in Indiana.
CNG USA Rally
AmpRenew Launched by Amp Americas
May 30th - June 10, 2016
Sponsorship Opportunities Are Available: $500 – Company Name And Logo If you are interested in being a sponsor for the rally, please contact Sheila Deringis at APGA at sderingis@apga.org. Please send a high resolution logo and company name in a jpeg format to Pat Riley, Gibson County Utility District at pat@gcud.net. Stops include: Long Beach, CA, Mesa, AZ, Albuquerque, NM, Oklahoma City, OK, Little Rock, AR, Memphis, TN, Trenton, TN, Dickson, TN, Sevierville, TN, Rock Hill, SC Greenville, NC, Richmond, VA, Washington, DC. Total Miles: 3,144 16
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Amp Americas (Booth 851) announced today that it has formed AmpRenew as a new division focused on the sale of renewable natural gas from AmpCNG’s biogas operation at Fair Oaks Farms in Indiana, site of the largest on-farm biodigester in the country. “In addition,” states a release, “Dillon Transport and Ruan Transportation Management Systems have signed fueling agreements with AmpRenew to fuel a portion of their fleets at AmpCNG’s public-access fueling stations.” AmpCNG CEO Grant Zimmerman is slated to speak at the Low Carbon Fuels: Getting to Truly Zero Emissions session at 4:00 pm today in Room 201.
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Cummins Westport announced the Near Zero engine, which is available now as an ISL G option, at the NGVAmerica meeting in Denver this past fall.
GNA president Cliff Gladstein and SCAQMD deputy executive officer for science & technology Matt Miyasato at the Game Changer session here yesterday.
RNG + NZ = Game Changer Heavy duty vehicles with well-to-wheel emissions levels approaching nil are possible today given the combination of new “Near Zero” engine technology from Cummins Westport and the use of RNG – renewable natural gas. The combination promises to solve the “black box” conundrum – finding the technologies that will allow ambitious California and federal, and indeed global clean air and climate change goals to be met in an economically acceptable manner. “We now have a clear, cost-effective strategy to achieve our air quality goals and climate-change objectives,” Gladstein, Neandross & Associates president Cliff Gladstein said in kicking off the Game Changer session here yesterday morning. GNA (the organizer of ACT Expo) prepared the 192-page Game Changer white paper, which was released here yesterday. The document was commissioned by the South Coast Air Quality Management District and private-sector sponsors including the Southern California Gas and Pacific Gas and Electric utilities, the California Natural Gas Vehicle Partnership, the American Gas Association, Agility Fuel Systems and Clean Energy Fuels. GNA describes the one-two technological punch as “the transformative sustainability solution that has made zero emission equivalent vehicle operations possible for the heavy-duty transportation sector, starting with heavy-duty vocational applications like refuse, transit, municipal, and urban delivery and then expanding to over-the-road trucking.” The near-zero engine, with California Air Resources Board-certified nitrogen oxide emissions at just 0.02 grams per brake-horsepower – 90% below 2010 U.S. EPA requirements – was introduced this past autumn by Cummins Westport (Booth 832). The technology is first being applied to the 8.9-liter ISL G, which powers thousands of vehicles including refuse trucks and transit buses. Cummins Westport commenced production of the ISL G NZ last month, and plans to extend
the technology both to its 11.9-liter ISX12 G (in 2018) and to the still developmental 6.7-liter ISB6.7 G – which was itself launched at ACT Expo 2015 in Dallas one year ago. Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus, which has already converted to RNG from Clean Energy Fuels (Booth 667) for its fleet of approximately 200 vehicles, plans to acquire 25 new ISL G NZpowered buses in the coming year, to re-power an additional 30 existing vehicles with the new
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engine in 2018, and to subsequently buy 50 further new ones. By taking advantage of California LCFS and federal RIN credits, the agency expects to save some $750,000 in fuel costs, maintenance officer Getty Modica said here yesterday. On the refuse side, “We’ve tried other technologies, we will continue to try other technologies, but we keep coming home to natural gas every time,” said Marty Tufte of Waste Management. Also giving fleet perspectives were Duane Lippincott, senior project manager for corporate automotive engineering with UPS, and Oliver Cruz, fuel operations program officer with the City of Long Beach. Other speakers at yesterday’s Game Changer session included Harrison Clay of Clean Energy Renewable Fuels, and Matt Miyasato of SCAQMD. GNA is at Booth 1353.
Low Noise. High Performance. 65 dB
BOOTH #
1335
M-Series™ Q
› INTRODUCING THE NEW M-SERIES™ Q AT 65 dB WITH NEW QUIET TECHNOLOGY. Going Green doesn’t just mean saving money and reducing your footprint, now it also means reducing noise pollution. Select a solution that is sized right for you and be rest assured that our family of quiet units will make for great neighbors. Because Going Green never sounded so good. Connect with us.
sls@bauercomp.com
www.BauerCNG.com
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Nohm’s New All-Battery Bus Start-Up Aims for EVs Boasting ‘Price-Parity’ with Diesels
Nohm’s bus, shown at a sneak preview for fleet managers in San Francisco this past Thursday, is being formally unveiled here.
A new company called Nohm is unveiling its fully battery-electric shuttle bus here, telling prospective customers how mass production ACT Expo 2016in Ad.pdf 4/20/2016 in China (and later the 1U.S.) will16:34:51 allow it to
offer a zero-emission vehicle costing operators about the same as a diesel. Nohm’s plan is to import vehicles from China and, as demand grows, commence
visit us in booth #634
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CNGci Type 3 Fuel Cylinders • Turnkey Pilot Projects Available • Great Offers on Demo Units • Competitive Pricing for Follow-Up Orders
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manufacturing in California, likely in 2018. Nohm’s partner is China’s Five Dragons Group (FDG), which according to a backgrounder has just opened a $500 million, 1.2-million-square-foot factory able to produce 100,000 battery buses per year. “Between the two markets, you can justify the spend,” Nohm founder and CEO Bryan Hansel said at a sneak preview of the Nohm vehicle in San Francisco last week. Nohm is pursuing “a price-parity strategy,” he said. “We’ll definitely have product on the road in 2016 and in 2017 we’ll be full-scale.” The company is targeting both transit and truck fleets. “We want Joe the Plumber to be able to buy one,” Hansel said. “A range of flexible truck configurations will be available, along with a full warranty and a nationally known fleet servicer,” the backgrounder states. The bus shown in San Francisco – and at Booth 1625 – has a 76-kilowatt-hour battery affording a single-charge range of about 100 miles. A more powerful, 96-kilowatt battery will be available, too. Also according to the backgrounder, initial deployment will be focused on the San Francisco and Los Angeles areas “to create network effects and build zero emissions freight and passenger systems.” Nohm vehicles will be able to charge using both Level 2 and DC fast-charge equipment (SAE J1772-compliant). Inductive/wireless charging is in development with Utah’s Wave. Nohm was launched in May 2015 as a joint venture between Smith Electric Vehicles and Hong Kong-based FDG Electric Vehicles. Hansel is the former CEO of Smith.
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FORECASTING
BIGGER
BLUER SKIES
Big Blue Bus is raising the green standard and reducing their emissions by nearly 90% every year with Redeem™ renewable natural gas fuel. Find out how the Big Blue Bus team is gaining community praise and saving money by switching to fuel made entirely from organic waste at www.cefuels.com/BBB