Trucking news and briefs for Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023:
CALSTART begins work on plan for zero-emission corridor
Industry nonprofit organization CALSTART announced Monday the launch of a project to guide investment in commercial medium- and heavy-duty (MHD) zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) infrastructure along I-95, one of the nation's most heavily traveled freight routes. The East Coast Commercial ZEV Corridor project will incorporate input from fleet operators, the charging and fueling industry, utilities and communities to determine the most equitable and efficient path forward to support MHD ZEV deployment."The I-95 Corridor project, once completed, will put into practice the integration of zero-emission vehicles, infrastructure, and addressing climate-change issues that has been carried out in other areas of the country," said John Boesel, president and CEO of CALSTART. "The successful implementation of this project will put to rest the unfounded concerns of zero-emission opponents by demonstrating that this technology is both economically feasible and a benefit to all."
Funded by a $1.2M grant from the Department of Energy, the two-year initiative will define the locations, contributors, and processes that will result in an unprecedented, advanced technology, zero-emission freight corridor up and down the Eastern seaboard. The CALSTART-led ZEV Corridor project will transform the I-95 thoroughfare from New Jersey to Georgia into a model of MHD ZEV efficiency, significantly improving the health and well-being of both drivers and the communities in and around the routes, as well as powering improvements and expansion across the industries that produce MHD ZEVs and their supporting infrastructure.
Cummins announces collaboration on Open Telematics Architecture
Cummins on Monday announced a collaboration with the Eclipse Foundation, Microsoft, and other industry partners to release a new approach to develop telematics software for commercial vehicles.
The Open Telematics Framework is being designed to allow companies to accelerate time to market and reduce costs. It allows each company to write their telematics application once and deploy it to any telematics hardware running the Open Telematics Framework. This "write once, run anywhere" approach will eliminate the complex customization and reprogramming efforts that have historically burdened telematics application developers, the companies claim, and it also incorporates the latest cybersecurity capabilities.
“We believe there is a better way for the industry to advance digital technologies by removing much of the costly and time-consuming development efforts that most companies experience when bringing new telematics applications and features to market,” said Sherry Aaholm, vice president and chief digital officer at Cummins. "We are contributing this Open Telematics infrastructure through a non-commercial license because we believe having a common telematics environment will enable the industry to develop customer-facing applications more quickly and easily, bringing the value to our customers sooner.”
First introduced to this project through its relationship with Microsoft, Cummins will release the Open Telematics Framework through the Eclipse Foundation’s Software Defined Vehicle (SDV) Working Group.
Microsoft is working on cloud management capabilities, that when combined with the in-vehicle capabilities contributed by Cummins, will result in an open and comprehensive end-to-end solution. The Eclipse Foundation’s Software Defined Vehicle Working Group includes a growing list of 38 different automotive and technology companies.
The Open Telematics Framework is a collaboration between numerous companies in the industry and not just a Cummins-focused effort. Participants will not be locked into any proprietary solutions. The goal is for companies to collaborate on a solution to grow capabilities, enhancing the Open Telematics Framework to serve an even broader range of developers, OEMs, and aftermarket telematics providers, including Saucon Technologies and Platform Science.
Ascend Transportation names new president
Ascend Transportation has named Mike Cafarelli as its new president. Carafelli most recently served as the president at The Dart Network and held various leadership roles at Swift Transportation, CRST, Central Refrigerated and CR England. He has an MBA in accounting from the University of Phoenix and a bachelor's of science in sociology from Southern Utah University.
The company said Carafelli "brings a reputation of excellence and superior results to the role accumulated over his 30-plus years of experience leading successful transportation organizations with a focus on delivering outstanding service, building strategic relationships to solve transportation challenges, and creating great driving jobs."
