The Industrial EVoultion has begun in the Bakken oilfields. In the heart of the Bakken, TrainND Northwest has taken on a project to help transition fossil fuel jobs and training into a hybrid world.
“One of the things we looked at with the EVolution Hybrid is the future of the transportation and trucking industry,” Kenley Nebeker, executive director, TrainND Northwest said. “We are really trying to find a way to expose our students and the community to the potential that lies within the electric truck, or in this case a hybrid truck. I’ve never been a believer in all-one-way or another.”
Nebeker is referring to an all EV solution or an all fossil fuel solution. Nebeker believes this project will shine a light on how a “marriage” between the two concepts will ultimately become a viable solution to an energy transition.
Levi Perkins, Perkins Electric Innovations, explained some of the innovations behind the EV Trucking industry as well as current hurdles in next level transportation.
“There’s got to be a solution,” Perkins said. “Essentially what we want to do is capture that energy and convert is into some kind of kinetic energy and drive this vehicle down the road.”
Host Jason Spiess referred to several past interviews with trucking innovators like Jerry Moyes, CEO, Swift Transportation and their attempts to use CNG as fuel, but their engines “couldn’t get over the Rockies” as well as other attempts by Cummings.
“In the past we’ve had compressed natural gas as a supplemental fuel source and supplement it with diesel. Some did a full conversion,” Perkins said. “One of the setbacks with CNG is we do not have a real integrated infrastructure for fueling across America.”
The interview continued discussing some of the technical pros and cons of the EVolution Hybrid. From the electric grid to new jobs being created while diesel mechanics will see their own evolution.
The project is scheduled to take 9-12 months, depending on the supply chain, according to Nebeker.
About TrainND NorthWest
TrainND Northwest is a division of Williston State College (WSC), a two-year public community college in the North Dakota University System (NDUS). The North Dakota State Board of Higher Education is the policy-setting and advocacy body for the NDUS. For more information on the governing body, officials and faculty, please refer to the WSC Catalog at www.willistonstate.edu. TrainND Northwest is located at the Workforce Training Campus of WSC. Construction was completed in 2015, and facilities include classrooms, offices, The Bistro (food service), conference room, field training simulators, nursing lab, and computer lab. An outdoor yard holds mobile equipment, commercial vehicles, a range of crane types, a workover rig, and field safety training equipment.
TrainND Northwest meets the workforce training needs of northwestern North Dakota as part of TrainND’s statewide workforce training network. TrainND Northwest believes that partnerships with business and industry foster an environment of continuous improvement to provide North Dakota with a competitive workforce. TrainND Northwest works with business, industry, government agencies, and non-profits to assess training needs and deliver timely, relevant, training that maximizes employee productivity and improves entity performance.
To contact Kenley Nebeker, email kenley.nebeker@willistonstate.edu
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