Originally Promoted to Cut Truck Idling Emissions, APUs Now Embraced by Fleets to Save on Fuel
By Susan L. Hodges, Special to Transport Topics
This story appears in the April 7 print edition of Transport Topics.
Auxiliary power units, initially pushed by federal and state governments to reduce air pollution despite concerns by fleet owners and owner-operators over their initial cost, are attracting more buyers who purchase them for the fuel savings, now that average diesel prices are about $4 a gallon.
Dennis Williams, owner of APU dealer LinDen Engineering in Golden, Colo., said: “Drivers tell me the money they save is very important, because it allows them to buy a house in a nice neighborhood and send their kids to a nice school. ‘It must be working,’ they say, ‘because I can pay for these things now.’ ”
The Idle Elimination Manufacturers Association said U.S. trucks collectively burn 1.2 billion gallons of fuel idling each year, which calculates to $3,000 to $7,000 annually per truck. Over a year, according to IEMA, idling produces about 22 U.S. short tons of greenhouse gases per truck, in addition to considerable wear and tear on the truck engine.
APUs were first developed in 1984 by Pony Pack Inc., said Rex Greer, company president and founder of IEMA. APUs soon became a viable tool to cut emissions in the face of anti-idling regulations passed in different states and municipalities beginning in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
“Trucks can use up to 1.8 gallons of fuel per hour idling with no load, and if you crank up the AC [air conditioner], you’re sure to use more,” said Joe Runnels, a spokesman for Power Pac APU Systems, manufactured by Power Technology Southeast, Leesburg, Fla. Turning the truck engine off and using an APU to power heating, air conditioning, radios and other devices consumes about one-fifth of a gallon of diesel per hour and lowers emissions nearly to zero.
Drivers who idle less than one hour a day have reported saving $100 a month in fuel, said Phil Matthies, sales manager for the Willis APU through Auxiliary Power Dynamics in Sparks, Nev. Drivers who idle seven or more hours in 24 have told Matthies they save more than $1,000 monthly.
There are more than 40 idle-reduction products now available, including:
• Cummins Onan’s Cummins ComfortGuard.
• Thermo King Corp.’s TriPac.
• Carrier Transicold’s ComfortPro.
• Black Rock Systems’ Blackrock APU.
• Electrification units from IdleAire Corp.
Other idle-reduction offerings from truck manufacturers, which are seeking greater market share, include Kenworth’s Clean Power, Peterbilt’s Comfort Class and International’s Maxx Power.
Total sales of APUs in North America in 2007, according to Diesel Progress North American edition, were 45,000 to 50,000 units; in 2006, 35,000 units were sold, according to Diesel Progress. Trucking industry consultant Jay Thompson of Transportation Business Associates, Denver, said those estimates likely include several varieties of the devices, and not just diesel-powered APUs.
Matthies said selling APUs is still “kind of a battle, because drivers have dollars on their mind and think only about what the unit will cost them.”
Runnels said his firm sells 100 to 300 stand-alone APUs a month at a typical price of $7,295, excluding installation, which generally adds $400 to $800.
Willis APUs generally cost from $11,900 to $13,500 and are integrated into a truck’s heating and cooling system. At an average fuel savings of $500 per month, Matthies said Willis units may take about 2.5 years to pay for themselves.
That the trucking industry likes APUs at all is perhaps ironic, given that initial endorsement of the mechanisms came from government agencies.
At the National Idling Reduction Planning Conference in May 2004 in Albany, N.Y., representatives from the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Federal Highway Administration came together with APU suppliers and a handful of representatives from the trucking industry to focus on realistic approaches to idling reduction.
At that time, fleet owners ex-pressed concern that, although idling reduction was a laudable goal, the cost of purchasing APUs would fall to trucking firms. However, attendees at this same conference called for immediate financial incentives from government agencies to help trucking companies afford APUs.
And the conference’s regulatory sessions concluded with calls for standardized regulations, including pre-emption of certain local and state regulations, such as those in California and New York.
In summary, the conference pierced the veil of opposing viewpoints and found solutions to accommodate both environmental and trucking interests. Today, an increasing number of jurisdictions now mandate APU use directly or indirectly via anti-idling laws — and transport carriers, as they realize the savings, are becoming supportive.
In California, legislation that became effective Jan. 1 requires heavy-duty trucks to be equipped with an automatic engine shut-off device that limits idling to no more than five minutes. And APUs on trucks manufactured in 2007 or later must either be equipped with diesel particulate filters or have their exhaust plumbed into the truck engine’s diesel particulate filter.
These new laws apply not only to trucks registered in the Golden State but to all others just passing through. As of mid-March, however, APU makers were still waiting for approval of their diesel particulate filters.
City ordinances add more layers of anti-idling legislation. In the city of Sacramento, idling longer than five minutes can produce a fine of up to $25,000. Eight more jurisdictions scattered throughout the United States now limit idling to not more than three minutes in most situations. These locales include St. Louis County, Mo., where fines can reach $1,000; the District of Columbia, where the $500 fine doubles for each subsequent violation; and Rockland County, N.Y., where first-violation fines run from $375 to $15,000.
The governmental push for APU use isn’t always punitive; several states offer finance programs to encourage APU purchases.
Pennsylvania, for example, offers a 50% match of up to $7,500 for equipment or processes that reduce energy consumption, promote pollution prevention and increase profitability — and APUs are included. Open to small-business owners whose business is based in the Keystone State, the program will award funds to four separate transport companies to help pay for APUs, Gov. Edward Rendell (D) an-nounced in January.
In Oregon, the “Everybody Wins” program provides low-cost, lease-to-own arrangements on APUs for truckers who do most of their idling on Interstate 5, and the Clean Diesel Pollution Control Tax Credit Program offers a 35% income tax credit to companies that install idle-reduction solutions and other diesel emission controls on trucks that spend most of their time in the state.
Other states with incentives to install APUs and other pollution-saving devices are Arkansas, California, Minnesota, New Jersey, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin.
“These programs are great,” said Amy Egerter, a spokeswoman for RigMaster Power, an APU manufacturer based in Toronto. “I just wish there were more of them.”
A shortcoming of current programs, Egerter said, is their focus on firms based in the particular state or firms that do most of their traveling there. Transport companies based in other states or that engage in cross-country deliveries have fewer options for purchasing assistance outside installment loans or leases from OEMs and other vendors.
Both integrated and stand-alone APUs have advantages. Integrated units tie into a truck’s heating and cooling system and circulate coolant from the APU to provide heat, while running an AC compressor with help from the truck’s condenser and fans. Integrated APUs typically generate up to 30,000 BTUs for cooling and as much as 25,000 BTUs for heating, both quantities nearly equaling capacity generated by a truck engine while driving.
If a problem develops in the truck engine, however — such as a blown head gasket and a loss of coolant — the APU would be affected, because it is connected. Whether APUs integrated into new trucks could void engine warranties, no such cases have come to light to date.
Stand-alone units have their own AC compressors, condensers and heat exchangers, allowing them to operate independently of a truck’s heating or cooling system. Stand-alones generate less power than integrated APUs, averaging 10,000 to 15,000 BTUs, which may or may not be sufficient to keep a driver as warm or cool as preferred. Nor can stand-alone APUs take over certain truck-engine functions, such as air pressure to maintain vehicle operation until a repair shop is reached.
On its way to market is a third type of APU manufactured by Life Force Energy Corp. in Salinas, Calif., and powered by propane. Stuart Solomon, president and chief executive officer of Life Force Energy, said that at $3,800, his company’s APUs will cost less than most others and less to operate. “Bulk propane costs about 40% less than diesel fuel,” said Solomon, “and if you buy it at a truck stop, the price will still be 22% to 25% less than diesel.”
That propane is becoming available at truck stops nationwide is pure serendipity for Life Force Energy. “When we started designing our product about a year ago, people wondered where they would get propane,” said Solomon, who estimates that two 4.2-gallon tanks of the gas will power the Life Force APU for about 24 hours total. “But all the RVs have propane tanks, so [supply] has popped up all over the country, so we got lucky.”
As of early March, Life Force Energy was negotiating a promotion grant that, if awarded, would allow the company to begin production in the second quarter of this year. At 235 pounds, including two tanks of propane, the unit will weigh about half of most other APUs and is said to be simple to install.
Yet, APUs aren’t the only answer to idling reduction. “Shore power” is AC power supplied to mobile users at places such as truck stops and rest areas.
But shore power has been slow to catch on. According to the Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicles Data Center, only about 30 truck stops nationwide have installed shore power sources. At this point, APUs dominate the idling-reduction movement.
This story appears in the April 7 print edition of Transport Topics.
Auxiliary power units, initially pushed by federal and state governments to reduce air pollution despite concerns by fleet owners and owner-operators over their initial cost, are attracting more buyers who purchase them for the fuel savings, now that average diesel prices are about $4 a gallon.
Dennis Williams, owner of APU dealer LinDen Engineering in Golden, Colo., said: “Drivers tell me the money they save is very important, because it allows them to buy a house in a nice neighborhood and send their kids to a nice school. ‘It must be working,’ they say, ‘because I can pay for these things now.’ ”
The Idle Elimination Manufacturers Association said U.S. trucks collectively burn 1.2 billion gallons of fuel idling each year, which calculates to $3,000 to $7,000 annually per truck. Over a year, according to IEMA, idling produces about 22 U.S. short tons of greenhouse gases per truck, in addition to considerable wear and tear on the truck engine.
APUs were first developed in 1984 by Pony Pack Inc., said Rex Greer, company president and founder of IEMA. APUs soon became a viable tool to cut emissions in the face of anti-idling regulations passed in different states and municipalities beginning in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
“Trucks can use up to 1.8 gallons of fuel per hour idling with no load, and if you crank up the AC [air conditioner], you’re sure to use more,” said Joe Runnels, a spokesman for Power Pac APU Systems, manufactured by Power Technology Southeast, Leesburg, Fla. Turning the truck engine off and using an APU to power heating, air conditioning, radios and other devices consumes about one-fifth of a gallon of diesel per hour and lowers emissions nearly to zero.
Drivers who idle less than one hour a day have reported saving $100 a month in fuel, said Phil Matthies, sales manager for the Willis APU through Auxiliary Power Dynamics in Sparks, Nev. Drivers who idle seven or more hours in 24 have told Matthies they save more than $1,000 monthly.
There are more than 40 idle-reduction products now available, including:
• Cummins Onan’s Cummins ComfortGuard.
• Thermo King Corp.’s TriPac.
• Carrier Transicold’s ComfortPro.
• Black Rock Systems’ Blackrock APU.
• Electrification units from IdleAire Corp.
Other idle-reduction offerings from truck manufacturers, which are seeking greater market share, include Kenworth’s Clean Power, Peterbilt’s Comfort Class and International’s Maxx Power.
Total sales of APUs in North America in 2007, according to Diesel Progress North American edition, were 45,000 to 50,000 units; in 2006, 35,000 units were sold, according to Diesel Progress. Trucking industry consultant Jay Thompson of Transportation Business Associates, Denver, said those estimates likely include several varieties of the devices, and not just diesel-powered APUs.
Matthies said selling APUs is still “kind of a battle, because drivers have dollars on their mind and think only about what the unit will cost them.”
Runnels said his firm sells 100 to 300 stand-alone APUs a month at a typical price of $7,295, excluding installation, which generally adds $400 to $800.
Willis APUs generally cost from $11,900 to $13,500 and are integrated into a truck’s heating and cooling system. At an average fuel savings of $500 per month, Matthies said Willis units may take about 2.5 years to pay for themselves.
That the trucking industry likes APUs at all is perhaps ironic, given that initial endorsement of the mechanisms came from government agencies.
At the National Idling Reduction Planning Conference in May 2004 in Albany, N.Y., representatives from the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Federal Highway Administration came together with APU suppliers and a handful of representatives from the trucking industry to focus on realistic approaches to idling reduction.
At that time, fleet owners ex-pressed concern that, although idling reduction was a laudable goal, the cost of purchasing APUs would fall to trucking firms. However, attendees at this same conference called for immediate financial incentives from government agencies to help trucking companies afford APUs.
And the conference’s regulatory sessions concluded with calls for standardized regulations, including pre-emption of certain local and state regulations, such as those in California and New York.
In summary, the conference pierced the veil of opposing viewpoints and found solutions to accommodate both environmental and trucking interests. Today, an increasing number of jurisdictions now mandate APU use directly or indirectly via anti-idling laws — and transport carriers, as they realize the savings, are becoming supportive.
In California, legislation that became effective Jan. 1 requires heavy-duty trucks to be equipped with an automatic engine shut-off device that limits idling to no more than five minutes. And APUs on trucks manufactured in 2007 or later must either be equipped with diesel particulate filters or have their exhaust plumbed into the truck engine’s diesel particulate filter.
These new laws apply not only to trucks registered in the Golden State but to all others just passing through. As of mid-March, however, APU makers were still waiting for approval of their diesel particulate filters.
City ordinances add more layers of anti-idling legislation. In the city of Sacramento, idling longer than five minutes can produce a fine of up to $25,000. Eight more jurisdictions scattered throughout the United States now limit idling to not more than three minutes in most situations. These locales include St. Louis County, Mo., where fines can reach $1,000; the District of Columbia, where the $500 fine doubles for each subsequent violation; and Rockland County, N.Y., where first-violation fines run from $375 to $15,000.
The governmental push for APU use isn’t always punitive; several states offer finance programs to encourage APU purchases.
Pennsylvania, for example, offers a 50% match of up to $7,500 for equipment or processes that reduce energy consumption, promote pollution prevention and increase profitability — and APUs are included. Open to small-business owners whose business is based in the Keystone State, the program will award funds to four separate transport companies to help pay for APUs, Gov. Edward Rendell (D) an-nounced in January.
In Oregon, the “Everybody Wins” program provides low-cost, lease-to-own arrangements on APUs for truckers who do most of their idling on Interstate 5, and the Clean Diesel Pollution Control Tax Credit Program offers a 35% income tax credit to companies that install idle-reduction solutions and other diesel emission controls on trucks that spend most of their time in the state.
Other states with incentives to install APUs and other pollution-saving devices are Arkansas, California, Minnesota, New Jersey, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin.
“These programs are great,” said Amy Egerter, a spokeswoman for RigMaster Power, an APU manufacturer based in Toronto. “I just wish there were more of them.”
A shortcoming of current programs, Egerter said, is their focus on firms based in the particular state or firms that do most of their traveling there. Transport companies based in other states or that engage in cross-country deliveries have fewer options for purchasing assistance outside installment loans or leases from OEMs and other vendors.
Both integrated and stand-alone APUs have advantages. Integrated units tie into a truck’s heating and cooling system and circulate coolant from the APU to provide heat, while running an AC compressor with help from the truck’s condenser and fans. Integrated APUs typically generate up to 30,000 BTUs for cooling and as much as 25,000 BTUs for heating, both quantities nearly equaling capacity generated by a truck engine while driving.
If a problem develops in the truck engine, however — such as a blown head gasket and a loss of coolant — the APU would be affected, because it is connected. Whether APUs integrated into new trucks could void engine warranties, no such cases have come to light to date.
Stand-alone units have their own AC compressors, condensers and heat exchangers, allowing them to operate independently of a truck’s heating or cooling system. Stand-alones generate less power than integrated APUs, averaging 10,000 to 15,000 BTUs, which may or may not be sufficient to keep a driver as warm or cool as preferred. Nor can stand-alone APUs take over certain truck-engine functions, such as air pressure to maintain vehicle operation until a repair shop is reached.
On its way to market is a third type of APU manufactured by Life Force Energy Corp. in Salinas, Calif., and powered by propane. Stuart Solomon, president and chief executive officer of Life Force Energy, said that at $3,800, his company’s APUs will cost less than most others and less to operate. “Bulk propane costs about 40% less than diesel fuel,” said Solomon, “and if you buy it at a truck stop, the price will still be 22% to 25% less than diesel.”
That propane is becoming available at truck stops nationwide is pure serendipity for Life Force Energy. “When we started designing our product about a year ago, people wondered where they would get propane,” said Solomon, who estimates that two 4.2-gallon tanks of the gas will power the Life Force APU for about 24 hours total. “But all the RVs have propane tanks, so [supply] has popped up all over the country, so we got lucky.”
As of early March, Life Force Energy was negotiating a promotion grant that, if awarded, would allow the company to begin production in the second quarter of this year. At 235 pounds, including two tanks of propane, the unit will weigh about half of most other APUs and is said to be simple to install.
Yet, APUs aren’t the only answer to idling reduction. “Shore power” is AC power supplied to mobile users at places such as truck stops and rest areas.
But shore power has been slow to catch on. According to the Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicles Data Center, only about 30 truck stops nationwide have installed shore power sources. At this point, APUs dominate the idling-reduction movement.
