Tenneco seeks to grow its truck business

ATLANTA. Brian Kessler, who took over as CEO for Tenneco back in May, said during a press event here at the inaugural North American Commercial Vehicle (NACV) show that he believes the company's future growth through 2030 is going to be strongly tied to the commercial truck and off-road highway markets.

“Big trucks are a little more intriguing for us,” Kessler said. “Over the next 15 years more diesel engines will come under regulation than are currently under regulation.”

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Cummins seeks to capitalize on future trucking trends

ATLANTA. There are three main “disruptions” occurring within the trucking industry today, according to a presentation by Srikanth Padmanabhan, president of the engine business at Cummins Inc., here at the inaugural North American Commercial Vehicle (NACV) show: energy diversity, connectivity, and automation.

And he believes Cummins must deliver “diversified, dependable technology solutions to our customers at the right time” in all three of those areas – even if they are not directly engine-related.

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Tenneco Highlights Waste-Heat Recovery, Ride-Improvement Solutions

Tenneco's Ben Patel Photo: Evan Lockridge

ATLANTA. Tenneco Inc. showed off its latest array of emssions-related and ride-performance products at a press conference held here on Sept. 24, ahead of the North American Commercial Vehicle Show.

“Tenneco is pleased to showcase its global expertise in complete design, engineering and systems integration for the commercial vehicle market,” said Ben Patel, vice president and chief technology officer, He explained that the company's global range of commercial-vehicle “clean air solutions reduce emissions, contribute to improved fuel economy, and enhance vehicle performance” while its ride-related products range from coil and air spring dampers for cabs, rear axles and seat dampers to lightweight torque rods and elastomer suspension bushings.

According to Patel, the concept box is part of Tenneco's focus on developing waste-heat recovery systems for commercial vehicles. He explained that waste-heat recovery helps speed up chemical reactions and that allows captured and stored heat from a vehicle to be leveraged to enhance engine operating efficiency.

At NACV, Tenneco is also showcasing the newest member of its XNOx Liquid Urea Selective Catalytic Reduction product family-- an integrated dosing-control unit concept that integrates the pump, motor, injector, controller, sensors, water cooling, and control software in a single device.

Patel said that the company's current production XNOx urea-dosing system, first introduced in 2011, now offers “expanded thermal range,” which means the system can be placed closer to the turbocharger without compromising dosing quality and performance. “The return flow design provides superior thermal tolerance without added complexity.”

He said other enhancements include an optional controller that features a flexible engine interface design and can predict engine-out NOx and account for ammonia storage and catalyst degradation.

Moving onto thermal management solutions, Patel said that as efficiency improvements and new low-NOx standards continue to drive the need for ultra-high efficiency SCR, Tenneco's cold start thermal unit offers ...Read the rest of this story

Eaton Cummins releases Endurant AMT for linehaul trucks

ATLANTA. The Eaton Cummins Automated Transmission Technologies joint venture, formed between Eaton Corp. and engine maker Cummins just last April, introduced its first product here at the inaugural North American Commercial Vehicle (NACV) show: a 12-speed AMT dubbed the “Endurant.”

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Cummins Sees a Future with Many Truck Power Options

ATLANTA – Cummins continues to embrace a “buffet” of power sources for the marketplace as it prepares for a future that includes diesel, hybrids, electric powertrains, and fuel cells.

“We win in the marketplace by seeing the future first, and beating the competition to it,” proclaimed Srikanth Padmanabhab, president of the Cummins engine business, during a briefing at the inaugural North American Commercial Vehicle Show. “We will be there to provide that power of choice to our customers.”

Cummins itself will produce 1.3 million engines this year, bringing its worldwide total to 15 million engines overall.

But the underlying source of power is clearly evolving.

Future internal combustion engines could be fueled by diesel, natural gas, or gasoline, he said. Battery-electric systems will find a place depending on specific applications, particularly in regional and urban environments -– especially as batteries improve. Cummins expects range-extended electric vehicles in 2019 and 2020 to serve the bus market and urban pickup and deliveries, and it has also unveiled an electric Class 7 urban hauler.

“We've been in this electrified business for well over two decades,” he stressed. “The technology is viable, and it's economically viable in certain markets.”

In selected cases, hybrids will combine electric and internal combustion power. And there will be a place for fuel cells, too.

Emissions-friendly technologies are rolling out in markets around the world, improving the quality of life in the urban environments from Amsterdam to New Delhi and Beijing, he added.

It isn't the only way the engines are evolving. Fifteen years ago, industry disruptors came in the form of globalization, emissions, and available power. Today, he said, the driving issues are diversity, connectivity, and automation.

As important as the fuel will be, connectivity is reshaping powertrains through the confluence of sensors, analytics, and artificial ...Read the rest of this story

Saving fuel with Run on Less

A 17-day fuel economy test involving seven different tractor-trailers operated across the country overseen by the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) delivered an average of 10.1 miles per gallon (mpg) using what Mike Roeth, NACFE's executive director, called "real trucks hauling real freight over real routes." That 10.1 mpg average also occurred despite higher winds and heavier traffic flows caused in part by hurricanes Harvey and Irma as well, the group said.

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Eaton Cummins Endurance Automated Transmission Designed to Save Fuel, Weight, Maintenance

ATLANTA – Eaton Cummins Automated Transmission Technologies unveiled the first product from its joint venture, a lightweight, efficient automated transmission, at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show.

Company officials said the new Endurant 12-speed automated transmission is the lightest, most efficient 1,850 lb.-ft.-capable heavy-duty transmission. Designed for linehaul applications, it weighs up to 105 pounds less than competitive automated manual transmissions (AMTs).

“Fleets will find that Endurant has been intelligently engineered from the ground up with features that protect your investment and make it easy to maintain,” said Scott Davis, general manager, Eaton Cummins Automated Transmission Technologies. “With a sophisticated communication system between the engine and transmission software, Endurant promises to deliver industry-best performance and reliability, fuel efficiency, reduced maintenance, and driver comfort features.”

Company officials stressed that Endurant is not an automated version of a manual transmission “Endurant was designed, engineered and created from a clean sheet to be an automated transmission, not simply an update to an AMT, allowing us to optimize the transmission's weight, dimensions and features,” explained Gerard DeVito, vice president, Technology, Eaton Vehicle Group.

“The market demands have changed, and automated transmissions really are the future, they're what our customers are asking, what drivers are asking for,” said Jeff Bosscher, systems engineering manager, Endurant.

The Endurant shares many of the features of the new Paccar Automated Transmission, which was designed by Eaton to work with Paccar powertrains.

An extensive component and complete vehicle testing program put Endurant through extreme conditions at the Eaton Proving Grounds in Marshall, Michigan, as well as in the high heat of Death Valley, California, and minus 40-degree temperatures in northern Minnesota – more than 2 million equivalent field test miles in all, they said.

The joint venture got customer input throughout the process, not just from fleets, but from drivers, technicians, and others as well.

Features ...Read the rest of this story