GETTYSBURG, PA – Adams Electric Cooperative, headquartered in Gettysburg, Pa., says it will be the first utility in the United States to own and operate a Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) bucket truck.

DUECO, Incorporated, in conjunction with ODYNE Corporation, has developed the PHEV propulsion system for the vehicle that minimizes fuel use and emissions found in a typical aerial lift truck. When at a job site, batteries can power all boom hydraulic functions and the climate control system for a full work day, without the use of the diesel engine. This means reduced noise from engine idle and elimination of any emissions while in battery mode. The hybrid bucket truck has a stock diesel engine and stock transmission.

The batteries require an eight-hour charge time. When the truck returns to the garage at the end of a work day, it is plugged into a three-phase, 240-volt outlet. The batteries recharge during off-peak hours using lower-cost electricity. The system can also be recharged at any point with the conventional diesel engine. The system provides the fuel efficiency and emission enhancements typical of a hybrid vehicle, while the truck is traveling to and from the work site.

Fuel cost estimates for the new hybrid bucket truck are half those of a non-hybrid truck. The ability to recharge the batteries at off-peak times offers significant savings.

In addition to the hybrid features of the PHEV bucket truck, the bucket can be lifted two extra feet after the boom is in place; it has a 55-foot vertical bucket reach, a 36-foot horizontal bucket reach, and a 12-foot telescopic extension on the upper boom; the bucket can rotate around the boom 90 degrees; and the jib can lift 1,000 pounds. The total payload of the vehicle is 7,500 pounds