Volvo Penta just announced it has been working with Rosenbauer, a European manufacturer of fire trucks, on the development of an electric drivetrain for those vehicles.
Rosenbauer is far along in its plans to introduce a concept vehicle it calls “Revolutionary Technology” which has a Volvo Penta electric driveline. They will soon begin real-world customer testing with fire departments in Berlin, Amsterdam, and Dubai.
Aside from the usual advantages of an electric vehicle such as reduced expenses for fuel and maintenance and quiet operation, the new Volvo Penta electric driveline helps, fire truck to accelerates to top speed faster so it can get to fires site more quickly.
With its independent hydro-pneumatic suspension, it is also more maneuverable and stable than conventional fire trucks, making it suitable for navigating congested city streets.
In addition to the battery pack, the new fire truck from Rosenbauer has an electric motor for each axle. There is also an onboard diesel generator to provide auxiliary power at the site of a fire if required.
The EV revolution, apart from cars, also involves all sorts of specialty vehicles like fork lifts, ferries, and police vehicles. The total numbers may be small compared to passenger car sales but the benefits to those smaller communities are just as valuable.
Reference- Volvo Online Newsroom, Clean Technica, Rosenbauer website, InsideEVs