The wild electric vehicles Australia is now using to deliver mail

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August 28, 2024

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The wild electric vehicles Australia is now using to deliver mail

I don’t claim to know much about Australia, and the little I do may or may not come from Crocodile Dundee. But I do know EVs, and it looks like the hundreds of rugged UBCOs that are set to become mail-delivery vehicles down under are uniquely appropriate for the diverse conditions facing the country’s mail-delivery network.

Australia Post is set to receive 175 new UBCO DUTY electric motorbikes for mail delivery, both in rural and urban areas. The rugged electric two-wheelers are designed to excel at traversing a variety of terrain and will help Australia Post make deliveries in areas that traditional mail vans either can’t reach or are too large to make sense.

The decision to adopt the UBCO electric motorbikes comes after a successful trial period during which the e-bikes were used in various utility evaluations.

Australia Post CEO and Managing Director Paul Graham discussed how the move addresses both a technological advancement and a focus on sustainability. “This is a pivotal moment for Australia Post and demonstrates our commitment to sustainability and forward-thinking technology,” explained Graham. “This new fleet allows us to electrify a broader spectrum of routes, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and further advancing our sustainability goals. We are proud to integrate cutting-edge solutions that benefit our team members, our customers, and the environment.”

“We have steadily been trialing electric fleet solutions since our humble beginnings a decade ago on a New Zealand farm,” explained UBCO CEO Oliver Hutaff. “Our latest model, the UBCO DUTY, is tailored for companies seeking efficient, low-emission delivery options. Partnering with Australia Post has been the perfect opportunity to showcase UBCO’s core strengths of robust utility and durability, focused on vehicles being used for work. We have developed a vehicle that meets the rigorous demands of high-use delivery, including a top speed of 95 km/h. These bikes will be used on average six hours a day, five days a week, carrying heavy loads, showcasing UBCO’s extreme capabilities and what places us apart in the market”.

At 95 km/h (59 mph), the UBCO DUTY is fast enough for use on urban highways, yet still rugged enough for off-road trails that would be tricky for larger vehicles and even light-duty electric bikes. It can also carry more mail than a typical electric bike thanks to its more robust frame and higher power drivetrain.

Built on a similar base to UBCO’s popular 2X2 all-wheel-drive electric motorbike, the DUTY has proven to be a capable mail delivery vehicle and utility vehicle for other major tasks.

Australia Post faces unique challenges in delivering mail to rural areas due to vast distances, sparse populations, and difficult terrain. These remote locations often have limited infrastructure, which can lead to longer delivery times and higher operational costs. Additionally, the unpredictable weather conditions in certain regions, such as floods or bushfires, can further complicate logistics, making it challenging to maintain consistent service.

To address these issues, Australia Post relies on a combination of air, road, and sometimes even boat services to ensure mail reaches even the most isolated communities. And now with a major fleet of electric motorbikes, Australia Post has a new weapon in its arsenal for fast and efficient mail delivery.

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Source link by Electrek
Author Micah Toll

#wild #electric #vehicles #Australia #deliver #mail

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Logistics firm DSV orders 300 electric semi-trucks from Volvo

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August 28, 2024

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Logistics firm DSV orders 300 electric semi-trucks from Volvo

Global logistics firm DSV has ordered 300 electric semi-trucks from Volvo Trucks. The deal represents one of Volvo’s largest orders to date for heavy-duty electric trucks, but it’s just a toe in the water for DSV, which operates a fleet of 20,000 trucks. (The company’s order from Volvo also includes 500 legacy fossil fuel-powered trucks.)

DSV plans to take delivery of the trucks between Q4 of 2024 and the end of 2025, and will deploy them throughout its European operations. The company aims to field 2,000 electric trucks by 2030.

“I’m very proud to deepen the partnership we have with DSV,” said Volvo Trucks President Roger Alm. “This order is proof of their trust in our company, and shows that zero-exhaust emissions transport is a viable solution here and now.”

“As a global leader in logistics, we must try to stay at the forefront of the green transition, and this agreement is a fantastic example of how new technologies can be brought to market at scale to make them more accessible for our customers,” said Søren Schmidt, CEO DSV Road.

DSV’s order will bring Volvo Trucks’ global sales of electric Class 8 trucks to around 4,000 units. The company boasts a 50% market share of electric trucks in Europe, and a 44% share of electric trucks in the US.

Source: Volvo

Source link by Charged EVs
Author Charles Morris

#Logistics #firm #DSV #orders #electric #semitrucks #Volvo

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Sage Geosystems and Meta sign 150MW geothermal power agreement

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August 28, 2024

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The climate law is helping bring solar to more apartment buildings

One of the most promising new forms of clean electricity just got a significant boost.

Earlier today at a U.S. Department of Energy workshop, next-generation geothermal energy startup Sage Geosystems announced that it had agreed to supply Meta, the owner of Facebook, with 150 megawatts of geothermal power.

The goal is for the first phase of the project to start generating carbon-free electricity for Meta’s massive data centers in 2027, per the company press release. Sage will build the geothermal installation in a state “east of the Rocky Mountains,” but hasn’t yet decided on a specific location. The company declined to share project financials.

“As energy demand continues to grow, the need for reliable, resilient, and sustainable power is paramount and our partnership with Meta underscores the critical need for innovative and sustainable energy solutions like ours,” CEO Cindy Taff, who joined Sage Geosystems as CEO in 2020 after more than three decades at oil and gas supermajor Shell, said in a press release.

The agreement with Meta is the company’s first major push into electricity generation.

Earlier this month Sage Geosystems launched another major project involving a related but distinct task: storing excess clean energy in the ground for later use.

On August 13, Sage Geosystems unveiled plans to build what it called the world’s first geopressured geothermal energy storage facility, located in Christine, Texas, on the site of a coal plant owned by the San Miguel Electric Cooperative. The installation will pump water underground, building up pressure that can be released later, when power demand spikes, in order to spin a turbine and send electricity to the grid. The company successfully tested the technology, which it has referred to as an “earthen battery,” at an abandoned gas well in San Isidro, Texas, in 2023.

The facility will use grid power to begin with, but Sage is looking into the possibility of installing its own solar in the near term, Taff told Canary Media. Once online later this year, the installation will be able to discharge 3 megawatts of electricity to the Texas grid for between six and ten hours at a time.

“We are starting at 3 megawatts, but we can scale at this location up to 50 megawatts on a single what we call pad, or facility area,” Taff said. But the first step is getting the initial commercial installation up and running, which will help Sage attract the project funding required to build bigger facilities.

Sage’s two new announcements are the latest evidence of the ongoing renaissance in geothermal energy production.

The energy source is not entirely new. The largest geothermal power plant complex in the world, built on a field of hot springs in Northern California, has operated continuously since 1960. But historically geothermal energy has only been viable in certain geological regions, like swaths of the American West or Iceland, where heat simmers just beneath the earth’s surface.

Source link by Canary Media

Author Dan McCarthy

#Sage #Geosystems #Meta #sign #150MW #geothermal #power #agreement

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Dodge Charger Daytona possibly preparing for police duty

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August 28, 2024

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Dodge Charger Daytona possibly preparing for police duty

Dodge is preparing its next-gen cop car
Dodge teased what appears to be a police-spec Charger Daytona EV
The old gas-powered Charger was popular with police fleets

The outgoing gasoline Dodge Charger sedan has become a staple of police fleets, but will that also be the case for the all-electric 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona?

An Instagram post on Dodge Law, the official account for the Stellantis brand’s law enforcement business, shows the new Charger in police garb. The vehicle is labeled as a concept, and the post notes that more details are soon to come.

Dodge Law Instagram post from Aug. 2024

While the post doesn’t specify whether the car pictured is a Charger Daytona EV or the companion gasoline model, which uses a turbocharged inline-6 engine, the way the police decal on the hood dips down indicates that the police concept has the R-Wing front blade that is specific to the electric version.

The Charger Daytona will be offered as a three-door or five-door hatchback, with the latter offering space in back for detainees. A 100.5-kwh (93.5-kwh usable) battery pack provides up to 317 miles of range in civilian models, and a peak DC fast-charge rate of 183 kw allows for a 20-80% charge in about 28 minutes. Less relevant to law enforcement is the Fratzonic exhaust system that simulates the noise and vibration of the now-defunct V-8 engine.

2024 Dodge Charger Daytona

This would be the first all-electric police car offered by Stellantis in the U.S., but other EVs such as the Ford F-150 Lightning and Chevrolet Blazer EV have already been converted for law enforcement work. The City of South Pasadena, California, has even claimed to have the nation’s first all-electric police fleet, although it’s an outlier. U.S. police departments have been slow to adopt EVs, in part due to a lack of suitable options.

Considering the popularity of the old Charger with police fleets, perhaps the Charger Daytona will provide an all-electric platform better suited to their needs and help spur wider adoption of EVs among law enforcement. In the meantime, the civilian Charger Daytona is scheduled to reach dealerships later this year with a base price of $61,590.

Source link by Green Car Reports
Author news@greencarreports.com (Stephen Edelstein)

#Dodge #Charger #Daytona #possibly #preparing #police #duty

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Nissan’s Electric GT-R will be its first with solid-state batteries for over 1,000 kW of power

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August 27, 2024

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Nissan’s Electric GT-R will be its first with solid-state batteries for over 1,000 kW of power

The legendary GT-R is going electric and will likely be Nissan’s first to use solid-state batteries. As the new tech develops, Nissan hinted that solid-state batteries could give the electric GT-R even more power.

We got our first look at the electric GT-R after Nissan unveiled the Hyper Force EV concept last October.

Nissan claimed the electric sports car is a “game-changing hyper EV” with over 1,000 kW (+1,300 horsepower) of power.

In comparison, Tesla’s most powerful Cybertruck, the Cyberbeast, can produce up to 845 hp (621 kW).

All that power comes from a new electric powertrain with all-solid-state batteries. Nissan also developed the exterior with its NISMO racing team for maximum aerodynamics. For better efficiency, you can see added elements like the two-tiered front lip and rear diffuser.

When asked about using solid-state batteries in its EVs, Nissan’s global vice president of product planning, Ivan Espinosa, told Autocar, “You can easily apply it to things like sports cars.”

He explained that solid-state batteries make sense for electric sports cars “because you can package as much energy in half the space.”

Nissan hints electric GT-R first to use solid-state batteries

Espinosa hinted that the upcoming electric GT-R would be the perfect EV to debut the new solid-state batteries.

Although Nissan has yet to officially announce the electric sports car, the concept shows a blurred-out “GT-R” logo.

Nissan’s Hyper Force concept also includes its e-4ORCE AWD tech, which provides added control and handling on circuits and winding roads.

With Nissan retiring the R35 GT-R in the US after 17 years, will it introduce the electric GT-R we’ve been waiting for? Not anytime soon. Nissan aims to launch EVs with solid-state batteries by 2028.

In April, Nissan showed off its all-solid-state EV battery pilot line, calling the tech game-changing.

With the potential to pack about twice the energy density of lithium-ion batteries, the new tech can add power while reducing charge times.

Nissan-GT-R-solid-state-battery — Nissan Hyper Force EV concept (Source: Nissan)

Espinosa said, “Initially, the cost might be high.” But he expects the costs to go down as the tech advances, adding, “Because it has greater density, you need less material per battery in order to deliver the same amount of power, so the overall cost should be competitive.”

Nissan plans to use all-solid-state batteries for in a wide range of vehicles incluing pickup trucks.

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Source link by Electrek
Author Peter Johnson

#Nissans #Electric #GTR #solidstate #batteries #power

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InstaVolt introduces off-peak pricing for EV charging

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August 27, 2024

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InstaVolt introduces off-peak pricing for EV charging

UK rapid EV charging network InstaVolt is introducing off-peak pricing to encourage drivers to charge their vehicles during low-demand periods when electricity is cheaper.

Under the initial rate schedule, drivers will be able to charge for 54 pence (p) per kWh between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am across InstaVolt’s network of more than 1,600 chargers—more than a third less than the regular price of 85p per kWh.

The lower off-peak rate will initially be available to InstaVolt App users, and will be extended to contactless users before the end of the year. The company plans to support variable pricing in the future, including additional time-of-day and regional pricing.

InstaVolt operates more than 1,600 chargers and has more than 400 under construction across the UK, as well as operating sites in Iceland, Ireland, Spain and Portugal. The company plans to install 11,000 chargers in the UK and Ireland, and continue its European expansion, adding 5,000 chargers across Spain and Portugal and more than 300 in Iceland by 2030.

The company’s chargers are powered using renewable energy, and its upcoming Winchester superhub will use battery storage to take advantage of peak energy production.

“We know the winter presents extra challenges, and we’re mindful that the cost-of-living crisis is still affecting people. The price of energy is also set to increase following the recently announced October price cap,” said Delvin Lane, CEO of InstaVolt. “Charging during our off-peak hours will create a significant reduction for customers ahead of this rise. Our new tariff will have the benefit of offering motorists who can’t charge at home a cheaper rate for electricity.”

Source: InstaVolt

Source link by Charged EVs

Author Nicole Willing

#InstaVolt #introduces #offpeak #pricing #charging

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2025 Cadillac Lyriq drops prices and base trim

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August 27, 2024

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2025 Cadillac Lyriq drops prices and base trim

The 2025 Cadillac Lyriq drops the previous Tech base trim, and but lower prices for the remaining trim levels help counteract that move.

The Lyriq Tech started at $58,590 for the 2024 model year but lacked many of the standard features on the Luxury 1 grade that is now the base model for 2025. Thanks to a $2,700 price cut, the Luxury 1 costs $59,990 including the mandatory $1,395 destination charge. A Sport 1 grade is positioned just above that at $61,090 ($2,100 less than the 2024 model year).

2025 Cadillac Lyriq

Cadillac also cut the prices of the Luxury 2 and Sport 2 grades by $2,000, so they now start at $64,990 and $65,490, respectively. The top Luxury 3 and Sport 3 grades are priced $2,220 lower, at $68,390 for the Luxury 3 and $68,890 for the Sport 3.

A single-motor rear-wheel drive powertrain rated at 340 hp and 325 lb-ft of torque remains standard. A dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain that bumps output to 500 hp and 450 lb-ft is an extra $3,500. All Lyriq models use a 102-kwh battery pack; EPA range ratings of 314 miles for single-motor models and 307 miles for dual-motor models will likely remain unchanged.

2025 Cadillac Lyriq

The only notable changes to equipment for 2025 are standard OnStar telematics features and front-passenger memory, a standard Technology Package for Luxury 2 and Sport 2 grades that includes a hands-free tailgate and rearview camera mirror, and more color choices for the interior ambient lighting system.

The Lyriq debuted for the 2023 model year as the first Cadillac EV based on General Motors’ Ultium architecture. Cadillac is continuing to add EVs, including the entry-level Optiq and three-row Vistiq, but GM is reportedly reconsidering plans to make the luxury brand all-EV by 2030.

Source link by Green Car Reports
Author news@greencarreports.com (Stephen Edelstein)

#Cadillac #Lyriq #drops #prices #base #trim

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Kia EV9 Battery Pack Teardown: ’A Wonderful Design’

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August 27, 2024

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Kia EV9 Battery Pack Teardown: ’A Wonderful Design’

Kia EV9 high-voltage battery pack teardown by Munro & Associates reveals engineers likely thought about repairability when designing it.
There are two access plates underneath for serviceable items.
If a battery module needs to be replaced, the whole pack is very easy to take out of the vehicle and disassemble.

The 99.8-kilowatt-hour high-voltage battery pack that powers the Kia EV9 got high praise from engineering consulting and reverse engineering firm Munro & Associates. The electric SUV’s power source was taken apart and analyzed in the name of science, and the results are pretty impressive and could help ease the minds of current and future owners concerning repairability.

The pack is very easy to take out of the vehicle, with just a couple of electrical connectors, two ports for the liquid cooling plate and several bolts that need to be taken out. Then, the whole pack can be removed without special tools or sticky adhesives to worry about.

Kia engineers put in two access plates for items that are likely considered to be serviceable items–a big fuse and the battery management supervisor unit. These can be replaced without removing the complete pack. But if that’s needed, mechanics and owners alike don’t need to worry about complicated removal and replacement procedures.

After dropping the pack from the vehicle, the 38 individual modules are very easy to get to, remove and replace if needed. Inside each module, there are four groups of three cells–the cells are connected in parallel, while the cell groups are connected in series. That said, it’s unclear if the modules themselves can be repaired or if they would need to be replaced. The pack has a minimum working voltage of 462V and a maximum of 643V, according to the teardown.

24 Photos

The battery tray itself was praised in the video embedded at the top of this page for the high-quality welds and the “wonderful design” of the cooling system. Kia went for a dead-simple approach of a single, large aluminum cold plate that sits at the bottom of the tray and cools the battery modules. There’s just one inlet and one outlet for the glycol-based coolant, which makes plumbing very easy and potentially problem-free. A composite shield that sits below the cold plate acts as both a protective layer and a thermal insulator.

The 17-minute-long video is pretty easy to follow. It’s also worth noting that the EV9’s battery pack is quite similar to other E-GMP-based EVs in Kia’s and Hyundai’s portfolios, such as the EV6 and Ioniq 5, so owners of these cars can also sleep easy knowing that it won’t be a pain to repair the battery pack.

Source link by Battery Tech – News and Trends | InsideEVs

Author

#Kia #EV9 #Battery #Pack #Teardown #Wonderful #Design

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Mullen scores a solid, 3,000 unit electric truck order from Volt Mobility

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August 27, 2024

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Mullen scores a solid, 3,000 unit electric truck order from Volt Mobility

Commercial leasing company Volt Mobility boasts clients that include UPS, DHL, and FedEx. And now, they’ll be able to boast about having one of the largest electric vehicle fleets in the world – because they just ordered 3,000 electric trucks from Mullen.

Volt Mobility placed a $210 million order for 3,000 class 1 and class 3 electric cargo vans to be delivered over the next sixteen months. From there, Volt will lease the vehicles to its corporate customer base throughout the Gulf Cooperation Council (“GCC”) region, which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

“Volt is reshaping the way people and businesses move across the UAE and GCC,” said David Michery, CEO and chairman of Mullen Automotive. “This landmark agreement provides Mullen with exposure to leading global transportation companies and the opportunity for utilizing Mullen EVs across the UAE and other areas of the Middle East.”

Mullen says Volt Mobility’s vehicles will be assembled at the company’s Tunica, Mississippi-based Commercial Vehicle Facility, an ex-GM plant which is capable of producing 20,000 class 1 and 6,000 class 3 vehicles annually with two production shifts.

Mullen will receive an initial $3 million deposit within 60 days, with additional payments coming due as the vehicles are delivered to Volt.

Electrek’s Take

mullen three stake truck — Mullen THREE stake bed; via Volt Mobility.

Against all odds, Mullen is still alive. And, seemingly, more alive than ever – constantly defying the naysayers who expect its next press release to send it the way of the Tasmanian tiger, the dodo, and the first, second, and fourth incarnations of Fisker. Similarly, you wouldn’t expect a middle eastern logistics fleet to choose electric over diesel … I wouldn’t, anyway. As such, I should probably let one of the subjects of this article close it out.

“At Volt, we don’t just follow trends; we set them,” said Sophia Nau, managing director and CFO for Volt Mobility. “Our mission is clear: lead the transformation to sustainable, efficient and cutting-edge transportation.”

SOURCE | IMAGES: Volt Mobility, via Mullen USA.

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Source link by Electrek
Author Jo Borrás

#Mullen #scores #solid #unit #electric #truck #order #Volt #Mobility

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CASE’s new 580EV electric backhoe loader delivers instant torque and silent, emission-free operation

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August 26, 2024

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Yellow machines are going electric. CASE Construction Equipment debuted its Project Zeus electric backhoe concept at CONEXPO in 2020. Since then, the company has used customer feedback to guide the development of a production electric model: the 580EV electric backhoe loader.

CASE’s next-generation EV offers a zero-emission, low-noise solution suitable for work in urban centers or other environments where noise and emissions are an issue, while delivering other EV advantages such as instant torque, lower fuel costs and less maintenance.

The new CASE 580EV electric backhoe loader offers the same dimensional loading and digging specifications and delivers the same breakout forces as the company’s 4WD, 97 hp CASE 580SN diesel model. It also offers new features, including an 8-inch color display, air conditioning and adjustable four-corner, multicolored LED strobe lights.

Powered by a 400-volt, 71 kWh battery pack that’s charged with a standard Level 2 J1772 connector, the new electric backhoe loader is designed to deliver up to eight hours of operational run time on a single charge, depending on the application. The battery platform uses a thermal management system with system-specific cooling circuits to help maintain performance in hot or cold conditions.

“Designing this machine from day one as a purpose-built EV instead of a retrofit has enabled a slew of practical innovations that will positively change the mindset for teams considering EV equipment,” said Brad Stemper, Product Management Lead, North America. “We looked at every aspect of the machine and enhanced power consumption throughout to deliver exceptional EV performance that operators will see and feel when digging, loading or moving dirt.”

The four-wheel-drive 580EV uses two independent electric motors for the PowerDrive transmission and hydraulic pumps feeding the loader, backhoe and steering systems to minimize energy consumption and improve performance in loading applications.

CASE’s electric backhoe loader will soon be followed by the commercial availability of two additional EVs: the CX25EV 2.5-metric ton mini-excavator and the CL36EV 3.6-metric ton compact wheel loader. The new models will expand CASE’s EV lineup to five models, including the previously launched CX15EV electric mini excavator and the SL22EV small articulated loader.

“These new machines set a new benchmark in electrification and sustainable construction, and they’re a testament to our customer-centered approach to practical innovation as we expand our product portfolio,” said Terry Dolan, VP, North America. “Electrification brings real-world solutions to unique jobsite demands, helping urban construction contractors, utility teams, municipal crews and other contractors further improve productivity, efficiency and their bottom line.”

Source: CASE Construction Equipment

Source link by Charged EVs

Author Charles Morris

#CASEs #580EV #electric #backhoe #loader #delivers #instant #torque #silent #emissionfree #operation

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