A new era of electric truck eight trucks began in North America with two battery-electric
Freightliners Cascadia tractors being delivered to customers in August. Penske Truck Leasing
and NFI are two companies spearheading the process of incorporating the vehicles into revenue
service. As a consequence of the introduction of electric trucks, there will be a shift in terms of
how the equipment will be specified. The change will mean that the fleet equipment managers
will have limited options in terms of choice of the powertrain components compared to
previously where they had that liberty.

BYD North America has been on the front seat of marketing Class 6 electric trucks in the US.
Many other companies have shown interest and are preparing the Class 8 electronic power space:
including; Tesla, Nikola Motor Co., Kenworth, Peterbilt, Navistar, and Cummins Inc. Volvo
Trucks North America stated that there enter the venture in 2020. Kenworth and Toyota are
working together on Class 8 electric trucks powered by hydrogen cells, as well as Nikola.
Mack Trucks presented its Mack LR battery-electric truck that will be tested next year. Earlier in
August, Proterra came up with a business that involves the design and supply of electric
drivetrains to commercial vehicle builders. Proterra Powered has several partners, which
according to the director of company, Claire McConnell, are offered different levels of support
and expertise With respect to their specific needs, ranging from battery purchases to designing
the vehicles and choice of the drivetrain, which is one of Proterra’s significant strengths,
producing over 400 buses operational in over 40 states.

Those in a pole position of standardizing the design of the electric trucks are the suppliers and
the truck builders. Other companies, on the other hand, have the thought that it's still too early to
discuss the matter of standardization. According to the Kenworth Marketing Director Kurt Swihart, they are still monitoring to see how the market unfolds though they are down to business to produce a product fit for the market.

Gary Horvat of Navistar explained that the issue of EVs not only about the products since it's to
work well through information technology, with the dealers' network in place and a perfect
charging strategy for the economics of scale. It is said that is will take quite some time before the
EVs take place on the market. Along the way, many companies will work in alliance towards
productions of other technologically advanced vehicles, for instance, Dana Inc. and Meritor Inc.
have recently made significant acquisitions.