Industry in flux: Cummins outlook on evolving electrification technology
As the race for vehicle electrification continues in the transportation industry, Cummins is looking to the future with a new electrified power segment, said Gary Parker, director, electrified power engineering programs, during his presentation at the 2019 Green Truck Summit. The Green Truck Summit is an annual alternative fuels and advanced technology conference produced by NTEA – The Association for the Work Truck Industry.
Cummins anticipates the "Electri-city," as part of a 20- to 25-year transition. The company anticipates three phases as part of this transition:
- Phase 1 - recognizing that there is a sociability need. In this phase, fleets will have the capability to use current technology to create a suitable drive cycle, and subsidies will help offset the higher initial cost of electric vehicles.
- Phase 2 - this phase will see improved technology, with wider local regulations. There will still be some subsidies to encourage fleets to adopt electric technology, and a broader charging infrastructure will make electrification feasible for a wider variety of fleets.
- Phase 3 - this is when Cummins predicts that the economics for vehicle electrification will become fully viable, with further technology breakthroughs enabling fleets to realize a quicker ROI and lower total cost of ownership (TCO) for electric vehicles.
In terms of what to expect from Cummins in the future, Parker says to look for increased fuel diversity under the company's Environmental, Sustainability and Accessibility umbrella. As part of this, the company plans to increase biodiesel capabilities, build sustainable capabilities using abundant resource, increase natural gas diversity capabilities (CNG, LNG, RNG, Biogas) and develop 100 percent Parraffinic Fuels derived from NG and renewables for medium duty and heavy duty products.
