Just like university campuses with technology research centers, fleet management companies are providing excellent testing grounds now for alternative technologies. GE Capital Fleet Services has opened its Vehicle Innovation Center at its Eden Prairie, Minn., headquarters. The center features a private half-mile driving course and a vehicle center that includes alternative fuel vehicles from 20 automotive manufacturers. With 6,000 square feet of classrooms and showrooms, the center also allows visitors access to a variety of products and solutions from GE’s ecomagination portfolio, including solutions for the smart grid, EV charging stations, Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in a Box, fuel savings mobile applications, and other advanced energy and infrastructure technologies.
The first-of-its-kind center reinforces GE’s commitment to the deployment of more efficient vehicles in its fleet and in customer fleets. Showcasing the latest in a growing array of alternative fuel vehicles in electric, natural gas, propane, hydrogen and other formats, the center gives GE’s commercial customers the opportunity to learn about and test drive numerous alternative fuel cars and trucks in a single location with assistance from GE’s fleet, transportation, energy and advanced technology experts.