Eaton Corp. hosted U.S. Rep. Sander Levin, D-Mich., who previewed the company's commercial vehicle hybrid power technology at its Michigan Innovation Center in Southfield.

Rep. Levin also voiced his support of new legislation to extend the heavy-duty hybrid tax credit for five years and double the credit amounts.

"The Heavy Duty Hybrid Tax Credit Extension bill is an excellent example of how government, industry and the nation's commercial vehicle owners can collaborate toward a greener and more fuel-efficient fleet," said Dimitri Kazarinoff, Eaton vice president and general manager, hybrid power systems. "Working together, we can use this incentive to make hybrid power for commercial vehicles more affordable and speed its adoption."

The proposed bill would provide between 20 and 50 percent of the incremental cost of heavy-duty hybrid systems, assisting in the speedy commercialization of these technologies.

"The fuel savings achieved by increasing the efficiency of medium and heavy duty vehicles are tremendous," said Rep. Levin. "Simply putting as few as 10,000 hybrid electric trucks on the road would reduce diesel fuel use by 7.2 million gallons per year and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 83,000 tons. We need to spark the market for this new technology to get more of these trucks on the road faster, which will reduce emissions, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and help maintain our economic competitiveness."

Eaton displayed its range of hybrid technologies during the event, including its hybrid electric, plug-in hybrid electric, and two hybrid hydraulic power systems. The company's hybrid systems are available on truck models from International, Peterbilt, Kenworth and Freightliner, and are being used by such companies as FedEx, UPS, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Wal-Mart.

According to Eaton, its hybrid systems can improve fuel economy by 30 to 70 percent, with similar percentages in emission reductions, extended brake life and idle time reductions of up to 87 percent during work site operations.

Last week, Eaton announced it will help produce plug-in hybrid electric power systems for 378 vehicles, as part of $45.4 million government grant. The funding is part of the $2.4 billion in grants deployed by the U.S. Department of Energy under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Eaton will lend a hand to grant recipient South Coast Air Quality Management District and other affiliates, including the Electrical Power Research Institute, Altec Industries, Compact Power, Ford Motor Company and Southern California Edison, to deploy the plug-in hybrid electric commercial vehicles to more than 50 utility and municipal fleets nationwide.

More info: www.eaton.com