Eminox celebrated its 40th birthday by outlining what is on the horizon for the industry in terms of its emission reduction and retrofit potential – but for the latter, there is so far little coach operator interest
Eminox has a clear message to coach operators who want to upgrade vehicles to Euro 6 for London’s ULEZ: Show yourselves, and show yourselves soon.
The emission reduction specialist has seen minimal interest in retrofit from the sector. Despite that, it is confident that a multi-platform approval process achieved in partnership with LowCVP will simplify matters when demand does manifest itself.
That will involve the certification of a particular model with a specified engine and aftertreatment unit.
Where the same combination is fitted to other variants and chassis types, the use of telematics for three months to monitor compliance will permit certification without Millbrook testing.
“We are working on a common-sense approach, but the coach industry is not telling us what it needs,” says Head of Retrofit Engineering Niki Welch.
Long road ahead?
Eminox has developed a system for one of the best-selling pre-Euro 6 coach chassis, Volvo’s B9R. As an example of the lack of interest, it is sitting quietly on a shelf, and that looks like where it will stay.
“It is waiting to be fitted. It will improve B9R emissions to Euro 6, but we are finding it difficult to source a coach to take to Millbrook,” Mr Welch adds. A multi-platform approach is cheaper than the worst-case scenario of individual variant certification. But it doesn’t absolve timeline pressures.
“We are committed to coach retrofit, but operators must remember that it is not a trivial bolt-on. Design and validation of multi-platform equipment takes up to six months,” says Retrofit Sales Director Carlos Vicente. He adds that Eminox’s market intelligence suggests that most operators who lack Euro 6 are planning to pay the £100 daily ULEZ charge and pass it on to the hirer.
A far cry from 1978
All this comes against a background of Eminox celebrating 40 years in business. Its first major deal was to supply a National Bus Company subsidiary with stainless steel exhausts, and it has retained a strong involvement with the PCV industry ever since.
Its experience with retrofitting is extensive. It did its first such work in Sweden 18 years ago and the current SCRT system is a third-generation product.
The focus in the early days of retrofit was the removal of larger particulate matter, which led to the famous ‘hanky test’ over an exhaust. The hanky remained clean, demonstrating that emissions had been significantly reduced. But that work did little for smaller particles, which have come under scrutiny since then.
“Our challenge now is to get to near-zero emissions from a diesel engine,” says Mr Vicente. Eminox is well on the way to making a difference in that regard. Its Gainsborough factory will double capacity to 1,000 retrofit units in 2018
What of the future?
As part of its anniversary celebrations, Eminox held a roundtable discussion involving some senior figures involved in low emission strategy.
Most agree that coaches have been forgotten by government policymakers. But Andy Eastlake, MD of LowCVP, gave heart to those who may think that zero emission (ZE) will be the only game in town come 2040.
He believes that an outright ban on diesel will not happen, although focus may shift to renewables. Most diesel engines can already handle biodiesel.
What is likely to form a central plank of the road to ZE is engine-off capability. That means an electric motor within the driveline, with geofencing ensuring its use where appropriate. ZF has already tentatively broached that with its new Traxon gearbox. “An electric motor is a good thing to have. It allows energy to be recuperated,” says Mr Eastlake.
More clarity on this long-term roadmap is awaited. For city-based coach operators, it’s likely to result in a ‘split fleet’ arrangement, and vehicles will be more closely tailored to a particular task than currently.
Right sizing…
The pressure to reduce diesel emissions may lead to coach engines becoming smaller. But one expert does not call that downsizing. Instead, it is right-sizing, he says.
Reducing swept volume is difficult if durability is to be guaranteed. Power density is there already, but ensuring a million-kilometre service life will be a challenge. Right-sizing’s benefits come under part load, where smaller engines are more efficient.
That was just one idea floated at an event to mark Eminox’s 40 years. Another suggested that engines may become so clean that a ‘closed circuit’ of exhaust and intake air will be possible, creating a true ZE diesel with pollutants emptied periodically. Interesting times lie ahead.
routeone comment
Pressure on the coach industry to reduce its environmental footprint is here to stay. There will be many ways to accomplish that, but Eminox’s experience of little interest in retrofit is slightly concerning, especially when time from conception to delivery is considered.
If that continues, it’s likely that operators who run non-Euro 6 coaches into London’s ULEZ will pass the charge on. Those who have Euro 6 vehicles will not, and will be at a competitive advantage.
More welcome is Andy Eastlake’s prediction that diesel will not be banned. He is in a position to give an informed opinion, and there can be few who would argue with his prediction of coaches requiring engine-off capability to satisfy emission bans.
Retrofit specialists now have the equipment to upgrade older coaches to Euro 6. It’s up to the industry whether it takes advantage of that, or not.
