Lightning Hybrids: product expansion, name change and new headquarters

20170503 A Day3 7211 LightningLightning Hybrids announced at ACT Expo this week that it’s undergone a name-change as it moves to expand its product line-up and transitions to larger headquarters.

The Colorado-based company known for its hydraulic hybrid conversions is now Lightning Systems, CEO Tim Reeser announced at a press event Wednesday.

“The new name Lightning Systems and our rollout of new products reflects our company’s vision: To be a global leader in efficiency and emissions improvement solutions for fleets of medium and heavy duty commercial vehicles,” said Tim Reeser, CEO of Lightning Systems, who made the announcement at the ACT Expo, North America’s largest clean vehicle event. “We are rolling out a full portfolio of products to help fleet operations be as efficient as possible, validate results with precise analytical information and realize a fast return on investment.”

In the next two years, Lightning Systems will introduce a new lineup of fleet efficiency products to support commercial and government fleets.

The company’s telematics program, Ligtning Analytics, which is available now with its hybrid system, will soon be available as a stand-alone product.

To keep up with demand, support manufacturing of new products, and to service its customers, Lightning Systems also will be moving its corporate headquarters to the Rocky Mountain Center for Innovation & Technology in Loveland at Southwest 14th Street and Taft Avenue. The new space has 45,000 square-feet, nearly doubling the size of the company’s existing headquarters.

Ligtning Anayltics is a new cloud-based, analytics system that offers precise fuel efficiency and emissions data and analysis for optimization of fleet vehicle efficiency, drive cycles and routes, driver behavior and vehicle maintenance.

Vehicle optimization is achieved through high-frequency recording of many real-time parameters from the vehicle, followed by expert data analysis, resulting in reports that provide insights and actionable recommendations to the fleets.

“LightningAnalytics tracks a fleet’s vehicles every second, recording up to 70 variables during that second,” Reeser said. “It records everything from acceleration rates, braking events, and ABS and traction control events, to miles per gallon, idle time, and vehicle health. But the real key is the way the data is processed and then provided to fleet operators.

“Our team of fleet data scientists use advanced analytics and formulas to reduce the data to useful information and present automated as well as in-person reports to fleet operators that give specific and actionable ways to optimize fleet operations for peak efficiency, often identifying problems and providing a solution preemptively.”

Lightning Analytics is already available to Lightning Hybrids customers, and will be available this fall as a standalone product for commercial and government fleets that operate diesel, gasoline, hybrid, and full-electric powertrain systems. The subscription-based service is currently free to fleets operating the Lightning Hybrids energy recovery system and has been used by over 30 fleets on 200 vehicles around the world for the last 12 months.

Benefits of LightningAnalytics include:

  • Reduce fuel usage: Understand which vehicles/drivers/routes to focus training and 
optimization efforts on.
  • Track Routes via GPS: Optimize vehicles’ routes for better fuel economy and safety.
  • Monitor Vehicle Health: Get real-time alerts for vehicles running sub optimally.
  • Connect Securely: All connections are password protected and encrypted.
  • Track Driver Behavior: Spot aggressive driving and reduce idling.
  • Deploy Fleet-wide: Compatible with most vehicles.

Lightning Systems has received orders from customers in Alaska, Colorado, Illinois, and Massachusetts, as well as around the world in India and the United Kingdom. Lightning Systems was recently named an Advanced Fuel Qualified Vehicle Modifier (QVM) by Ford Motor Company. Last winter, the company expanded its offices in the United Kingdom to service customers in Europe.