Toshiba to Provide Rapid Recharge SCiB™ Batteries for Proterra Zero-Emission Bus Fleet
Houston, TX (PRWEB) September 10, 2014 -- Toshiba announced today that it has been selected as the battery supplier for the next generation, all-electric, zero-emission bus from Proterra Inc., the leading electric vehicle (EV) transit bus manufacturer. The new fleet will use Toshiba’s Rechargeable Batteries (SCiB™), a safe rechargeable battery solution with high-rate performance and long-life capabilities that is used in a wide range of applications, from EVs to grid energy storage.
“With a rapid recharge capability and outstanding life performance, Toshiba’s SCiB battery is ideally suited for zero-emission public transit,” said Greg Mack, Vice President of Toshiba International Corporation’s (TIC) Power Electronics Division. “Toshiba has decades of experience in transportation and we see the SCiB battery as key to expanding environmentally-friendly modes of transportation with optimum power performance in North America.”
Proterra has led the way in creating the quietest, most fuel-efficient and environmentally sustainable transit bus on the market today, helping cities across the United States reduce their carbon footprints and improve quality of life for residents. In addition to having nearly six times the fuel economy per kilometer/mile (when translated into conventional fuels) of a diesel bus and being a true zero-emission means of transport, Proterra buses feature a fast charge system that takes less than 10 minutes to charge during regularly scheduled route stops, making the buses well-suited to transit applications.
“Because safety and performance are paramount to Proterra, we are very deliberate in each part we select for our buses, putting vendors through a rigorous qualification process,” said Proterra Inc. CEO, Ryan Popple. “Battery quality is critical to the performance of Electric Vehicles; partnering with a world-class team like Toshiba and utilizing SCiB technology will enable Proterra to offer its customers the highest-performance, safest, and most reliable urban transit vehicles.”
The SCiB is part of a wide range of solutions designed to enable smarter communities. Leveraging expertise cultivated since the company’s foundation, Toshiba is committed to being a global leader in smart community solutions that enrich the quality of life for people throughout the world. The Toshiba Group has already participated in more than 30 smart community demonstration projects highlighting battery storage and cloud-based solutions for social infrastructure that satisfy the differing needs in developing and developed countries. With a wide range of experience and know-how acquired from the stable operation of social infrastructure over many years, Toshiba is confident in its ability to present more effective and more sophisticated solutions based on precise simulations and highly accurate predictions.
Toshiba’s SCiB batteries have excellent thermal performance, enabling their high-rate charging capability. The lithium-titanate chemistry contained in SCiB makes the batteries highly resistant to thermal runaway and lithium metal plating, providing exceptional battery safety characteristics.
SCiB products also offer minimal capacity degradation and are capable of 10,000 or more charge-discharge cycles, depending on operating conditions. This operational life often exceeds that of the applications in which they are used, eliminating the need for battery replacement and reducing the environmental impact of waste batteries.
More online information about SCiB:
• SCiB Battery website http://www.toshiba.com/tic/industrial/rechargable-battery
• SCiB Battery video http://youtu.be/7ffXunML8jY
• SCiB Battery white paper http://youtu.be/7ffXunML8jY
About Toshiba
Toshiba Corporation, a Fortune Global 500 company, channels world-class capabilities in advanced electronic and electrical product and systems into five strategic business domains: Energy & Infrastructure, Community Solutions, Healthcare Systems & Services, Electronic Devices & Components, and Lifestyles Products & Services. Guided by the principles of The Basic Commitment of the Toshiba Group, “Committed to People, Committed to the Future”, Toshiba promotes global operations towards securing “Growth Through Creativity and Innovation”, and is contributing to the achievement of a world in which people everywhere live in safe, secure and comfortable society.
Founded in Tokyo in 1875, today’s Toshiba is at the heart of a global network of over 590 consolidated companies employing over 200,000 people worldwide, with annual sales surpassing 6.5 trillion yen (US$63 billion). To find out more about Toshiba, visit http://www.toshiba.co.jp/index.htm.
About Toshiba International Corporation
TIC is a Toshiba America Inc. (TAI) Group Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Toshiba Corporation. TIC is headquartered in Houston, Texas and employs approximately 2,000 people. TIC provides application solutions to a wide range of industries including industrial, power systems, and transmission and distribution systems. For more information about TIC, please visit http://www.toshiba.com/tic.
About Proterra
Proterra is a leader in the design and manufacture of clean technology and clean energy, providing zero emission vehicles that enable bus fleet operators to significantly reduce operating cost while delivering clean, quiet power to the community. With unmatched durability and energy efficiency based on rigorous industry testing at Altoona, the Proterra product is proudly made in America and the company based in Greenville, SC. For more information about Proterra, please visit http://www.proterra.com.
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Travis Coggin, Toshiba International Corporation, https://www.toshiba.com/tic/, +1 (800) 231-1412 Ext: 3341, [email protected]
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