Cummins has received $54 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy to go towards two fuel efficiency projects.
Under one project, $39 million will go to support systems level technology development, integration and demonstration for highly efficient Class 8 trucks (SuperTruck). Another $15 million will support advanced-technology powertrains for light-duty vehicles (ATP-LD).

The projects are meant to reduce fuel consumption, petroleum usage and greenhouse gas emissions.

The Cummins awards were among nine project awards totaling more than $187 million, announced at an event held at Cummins Columbus Technical Center, which was attended by U.S. Secretary of Energy Dr. Steven Chu, U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh, U.S. Rep. Baron Hill and state and local officials.

Cummins will team up with Peterbilt Motors Company on its SuperTruck project, which includes developing and demonstrating a highly efficient and clean diesel engine, an advanced waste heat recovery system, an aerodynamic Peterbilt tractor-and-trailer combination and a fuel cell auxiliary power unit to reduce engine idling. The goal of the project is to improve Class 8 vehicle freight efficiency by 50 percent through advanced and efficient technologies.

"Cummins has long enjoyed a collaborative partnership with the DOE," said Tom Linebarger, Cummins president and chief operating officer. "We appreciate the funding provided by the DOE for the Cummins SuperTruck and Light-Duty programs, which will create jobs, help address climate change and reduce oil consumption."

For the light-duty program, Cummins will develop a fuel-efficient, low emissions diesel engine that achieves a 40 percent fuel economy improvement over conventional gasoline technology and significantly exceeds 2010 EPA emissions requirements. The project will involve a combustion engine and aftertreatment system designed to achieve Tier 2 Bin 2 emission compliance while maintaining vehicle performance and driveability. The project will also develop the system architecture to accommodate on-board diagnostic regulations from the design stage to better enable product commercialization.

"The DOE has provided strong leadership in establishing an advanced combustion engine research and development partnership between industry and government," said Dr. John Wall, Cummins vice president and chief technical officer. "Cummins looks forward to continuing our partnership with DOE to develop advanced diesel, hybrid and natural gas engine technologies that will deliver more efficient and cleaner combustion engines to our customers."