Nikola\u2019s order book is already full for its Nikola One hydrogen fuel cell tractors, slated to enter production sometime in 2022. Photo: Stephane Babcock<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n There are essentially two types of electric trucks in development today \u2013 and the producers of both types of vehicles say they will have models ready for sale as early as next year.<\/p>\n The more commonly recognized powertrains are \u201cpure electric\u201d or \u201cbattery electric\u201d vehicles. As the name implies, these are vehicles that rely on onboard, rechargeable battery packs to power electric drive motors and move the vehicle.<\/p>\n The second type is hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. These also use electricity to power electric drive motors. However, they carry onboard hydrogen fuel cells, which break down hydrogen and oxygen through an electrochemical process to create low-voltage electricity. Like their pure electric cousins, these vehicles have batteries on board to store the electricity created by the fuel cells.<\/p>\n In their essential forms, both of these means of powering vehicles have been understood for a very long time. The problem with bringing vehicles equipped with these systems to market was the cost of the components involved \u2013 most notably the batteries themselves. Until very recently, these batteries were not only expensive to produce and purchase, but their \u201cenergy density,\u201d the amount of electricity they were capable of storing relative to their size, was unsuitable for the kind of longer-range routes truck fleets needed to deploy electric-powered vehicles successfully.<\/p>\n But recently, major changes in both battery technology and cost have dramatically reworked the electric truck market both in the United States and abroad. And those changes go a long way toward explaining why these vehicles are suddenly poised to reshape conventional vehicle specifications in a host of applications.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere we are today is the result of global megatrends in a variety of aspects that directly affect the price and performance issues related to electric trucks and vans,\u201d says Steve Slesinski, director of product planning for Dana, which has make a series of major investments and strategic partnerships over the past couple of years to eke out an early leadership position as a provider of drivetrains and components for electric commercial vehicles.<\/p>\n Slesinski says that the costs of the large battery packs needed for electric trucks and vans have declined significantly over the past five to six years, to the point where there are now approaching the price a fleet would pay for a year\u2019s worth of diesel fuel for a similarly equipped vehicle.<\/p>\n \u201cFive or six years ago, a lithium ion battery specialized for a truck or van would cost around $1,000 per kilowatt-hour,\u201d Slesinski notes. \u201cThat cost has been declining \u2013 on average \u2013 about 20% per year. We are now at the point where batteries cost about $250 or less per kWh.\u201d<\/p>\n To better understand how important those cost reductions are for the future of commercial EVs, Slesinski says he likes to think of them in the context of trucks running today. \u201cIf you have a truck or tractor running 200 miles per day, you\u2019re going to need a 400-kWh battery pack to enable that kind of range. And to do that at few years ago, you were looking at a $400,000 price tag on a new truck \u2013 just for the batteries. Today, the cost of those same batteries is in the $100,000 range \u2013 possibly less. So, as I said, we are getting awfully close to the point of parity when it comes to comparing a new electric truck with a conventional, diesel-powered unit.\u201d<\/p>\n And now that the viability on pricing is there, Slesinski adds, access to economies of scale, in which mass production techniques bring prices down even further, will soon come into play as well.<\/p>\n Many of these same factors are happening with hydrogen fuel cells as well, says Mark Russell, present of Nikola Motors, which is spearheading the technology push to develop trucks that can tackle long-haul routes with this technology powering them.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s an old joke about hydrogen-powered vehicles,\u201d Russell says with a chuckle. \u201c\u2018Hydrogen is the fuel of the future \u2013 and it always will be.\u2019 That\u2019s because it took a long time to get to the point where a hydrogen-powered commercial vehicle made economic sense.\u201d<\/p>\n Change has come with stunning swiftness, Russell concedes \u2013 particularly for a fuel that seemed like it was never going to take off. \u201cHydrogen can be made as a byproduct of natural gas,\u201d he notes. \u201cBut it is an expensive process with carbon emissions penalties to boot. But those prices have gotten incrementally better over time. And in the past couple of years, the price of hydrogen, along with the fuel cells which chemically break hydrogen cells apart and create electricity as a byproduct, have decreased as well.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere is kind of an analogous trend going with hydrogen fuel cells,\u201d Slesinski agrees. \u201cOnce again, we\u2019re seeing decreased costs as more hydrogen fuel becomes available on an individual basis. But hydrogen is a great fuel. It meets any sustainability goal on the books today because there are no emissions whatsoever. As we project out into the future, I think we\u2019ll see the same trends come into play with hydrogen that we\u2019re already seeing with battery electric technology, along with further decreases of the price of the fuel itself to bring costs more in line with internal combustion engine vehicles. The cost of hydrogen right now is around $14 a kilogram. We need for it to get to around $4 a kg \u2013 with diesel fuel around $3.20 a gallon \u2013 before fleets can make an apples-to-apples comparison when purchasing new vehicles. But we are getting there. Hydrogen technology \u2013 just like battery technology \u2013 continues to improve at a rapid clip.\u201d<\/p>\n Dana showcased its battery electric powertrain technology at the Technology & Maintenance Council Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, earlier this year in a Peterbilt Model 379 straight truck. Photo: Jack Roberts<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n We live in a global super economy today, and nowhere is that reality more evident than in the automotive industry. And trucking is no different. The research and development costs of developing new engines, transmissions, and all-new models of vehicles can now easily run into the billions of dollars. In order to put themselves in the most advantageous position possible to recoup those investments and eventually turn a profit, truck OEMs must either have a global reach, or partnerships with foreign vehicle manufacturers. And that means they must recognize, and respond to global design trends and develop products that they can compete with and sell in any trucking market on the planet.<\/p>\n In other words, the days of designing and building a truck exclusively for North American market preferences are over. And while electric trucks are only just beginning to make inroads in North American vehicle markets, they already have firm beachheads established in foreign truck, van and bus markets.<\/p>\n \u201cThe foreign influence on electric trucks cannot be over-emphasized,\u201d Slesinski says. \u201cThere are very real emissions concerns around the globe \u2013 notably in places like India, Japan and particularly China \u2013 where governments are aggressively working to clean up the air and reduce smog. A lot of the vehicle electrification technology we\u2019re starting to see in North America today is a direct result of these foreign efforts to reduce emissions.\u201d<\/p>\n Another aspect that comes into play, Slesinski notes, is the very different nature of many urban areas in both Asia and Europe. Many of these cities are very old with narrow streets. Many of them are extremely crowded. So many of the local governments in these locales are increasingly turning to electric buses and trucks.<\/p>\n \u201cAs these major urban centers overseas continue to grow, they become even more crowded. And a lot of cars and trucks in the city centers can create real problems in terms of congestion and emissions,\u201d Slesinski says. \u201cThe Chinese are really driving a lot of the current electrification trends. And we\u2019re seeing similar trends closer to home in Canada. And all of this helps to push costs down further and spur more research in development in improved batteries and drivetrains.\u201d<\/p>\n Nikola has announced plans for a European version of its long-haul hydrogen tractor (which also will be available in a batter-electric version), and Russell notes that fuel cell technology is also under development there and in China, although he cites infrastructure as the biggest difference between the Chinese and North American markets.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are hard at work on developing an infrastructure here because we have to be. And we have to largely do so by ourselves, with minimal help from the government right now,\u201d he explains. \u201cWe are currently building the largest hydrogen dispensing station outside of China outside of Phoenix, Arizona.\u201d<\/p>\n Russell says Nikola\u2019s Phoenix hydrogen station will have a capacity for 1 ton of the fuel, with another 2-ton station located nearby. Soon, he notes, the company will begin work on an even larger, 8-ton-capacity station in Southern California, with a network of stations eventually going up first on the West Coast and then nationally.<\/p>\n \u201cThe station configuration will be set up so the fuel is measured by weight,\u201d Russell explains. \u201cHydrogen is about the same density as diesel fuel. So it is very energy-dense in terms of its Btu-to-weight ratio. And we\u2019ll be able to pump a couple of hundred gallons of hydrogen into a tractor in about the same amount of time it takes to fill the tanks on a long-haul diesel truck.\u201d<\/p>\n Another point Russell makes is that in the near future, thanks to technology advances in the renewable energy sector, these new fuel stations will be able to create the fuel needed to power hydrogen-powered trucks at a fraction of the costs it takes to drill for oil and refine it into gasoline or diesel.<\/p>\n by Jack Roberts<\/a><\/p>\n Source: https:\/\/www.truckinginfo.com<\/a><\/p>\n Fleet management is the use of a set of vehicles in order to provide services to a third-party, or to perform a task for our organization, in the most efficient and productive manner with a determined level of service and cost.<\/p>\n Fleet management activities are shown in the following graph 1:<\/p>\n Graph 1: fleet management activities<\/p>\n The proposal audit analyses and assesses all fleet management activities shown in the graph 1, and its main goals are:<\/p>\n With the information obtained, we\u2019ll elaborate a report that holds the overall status of the fleet management as well as the suggestions, recommendations and the measures to take in order to cut costs and optimize the fleet management activities.<\/p>\n CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK TO DOWNLOAD THE PROPOSED FLEET MANAGEMENT AUDIT:<\/p>\n Contact:<\/p>\n Jos\u00e9 Miguel Fern\u00e1ndez G\u00f3mez<\/p>\n 34 678254874<\/p>\n info@advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com<\/p>\n![\"Nikola\u2019s](\"https:\/\/fleetimages.bobitstudios.com\/upload\/trucking-info\/content\/article\/green\/nikola-two-alt-fuels-__-720x481-a.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/div>\nMegatrends Make their Mark<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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A Global Technology Push<\/strong><\/h3>\n
FLEET MANAGEMENT AUDIT<\/h3>\n
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Fleet Management Audit AFMC<\/a><\/h2>\n
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I\u00b4m\u00a0a Fleet Management expert, and the manager of\u00a0