Volvo Penta’s partnerships on BEVs featuring in summit roundtable

The road to decarbonization is a challenging one for equipment manufacturers. Not only are they focused on decarbonizing their manufacturing processes, but they have the added concern of reducing carbon emissions from the machines they make.

Helping them overcome the latter hurdle is the goal of many power systems suppliers. While many are developing electric alternatives to diesel engines, they are also working to help their customers understand which approaches are best for their unique applications.

Gradall had partnered with Volvo Penta on a concept e-excavator that the equipment maker had unveiled at ConExpo 2023. (Photo: Volvo Penta)

A discussion about how the OEM/power technology supplier relationship can foster decarbonization efforts will be part of the forthcoming Power Progress Summit in October. The roundtable discussion, “Maintaining the OEM customer relationship on the path to decarbonization,” will be moderated by Darren Tasker, vice president of Industrial at Volvo Penta North America.

“The goal of the roundtable is to show that electric drivetrains are here now, and they can be designed and adapted for a variety of different applications,” Tasker told Power Progress International.

He added that panelists, the companies of whom have all worked with Volvo Penta to develop and implement electric drivetrains for their vehicles, will focus their discussion on technical and application challenges.

One of the panelists will be Michael Popovich, president of Gradall Industries, Inc. Popovich’s 30 years’ experience in global management positions at Gradall and JLG Industries involving sales, marketing, engineering, product support, training and other critical positions.

In March 2023, Power Progress reported Gradall had partnered with Volvo Penta on a concept e-excavator that the equipment maker had unveiled at ConExpo. The EL41H4 featured power from two Volvo Penta batteries and a Volvo Penta electric driveline that included the complete high-voltage system.

According to the article, the partnership between Gradall and Volvo Penta dates to 2014.

Todd McBride, RTX sales & marketing manager for fire truck builder Rosenbauer America, will also participate on the panel. A Rosenbauer employee since 2005, McBride has been pivotal in advancing the RTX electric fire engine. His focus is on facilitating fire departments’ transition to this new technology.

TICO’s Pro-Spotter Electric terminal tractor with Volvo Penta driveline. (Photo: Volvo Penta)

A July 2020 report from Power Progress spoke of the electric driveline Volvo Penta developed for Rosenbauer’s RTX vehicle. At the time, Volvo Penta’s Paul Jansson called the project “our first industrial OEM partnership in the area of electromobility,” although the company’s partnership with Rosenbauer preceded that. The first North American RTX model was delivered to Los Angeles, Calif., in 2022, Power Progress reported.

The final panelist is Mallery Forrester Pindar, senior director of sales and marketing for yard truck manufacturer TICO. He leads all aspects of the company’s commercial sales channel, including its dealer network and national accounts, marketing and overall go-to-market strategy.

TICO’s partnership with Volvo Penta resulted in the companies collaborating on a fully electric terminal tractor. Reported by Power Progress in 2021, Frank Tubbert, TICO’s general manager, said at the time that the company “recognized the need for an EV application and wanted a partner who could deliver electric power solutions characterized by proven technology and backed by a trusted brand and superior support.”

In March 2023, TICO issued a press release saying it was going into full production of its Pro-Spotter Electric terminal tractor. The machine features a Volvo Penta driveline as well as batteries and e-accessories. In that release, Pindar said, “Fleet sustainability is a growing priority that TICO is tackling head-on.”

In addition to discussing the various products that have arisen from Volvo Penta’s partnerships with these companies, Tasker added deployment will also be addressed.

“I think there’s a lot of concerns about charging, so we’ll look to cover how that [is] addressed,” he said.