Bimbo Bakeries USA, the US arm of Mexico City-based Grupo Bimbo, recently ordered five vehicles from Motiv Power Systems featuring Motiv’s all-electric EPIC 6 chassis with step van bodies built by Utilimaster.
The company said it will deploy the fuel-efficient vehicles for product delivery in Ceres CA.
The EPIC 6 chassis is based on the Ford F-59 platform.
“Last mile delivery of baked goods is a perfect use case for EPIC based step vans,” said Matt O’Leary, Motiv’s CEO. “These are high-volume, low-weight applications operating on fixed routes. As such, they are particularly well-suited for electrification.”
EPIC chassis feature Motiv’s proprietary operating software, which enables a unique, modular approach to safely and reliably control various battery and hardware technologies. They are Ford eQVM approved and CARB certified, Motiv said.
“Sustainability is built into our company’s purpose—building a sustainable, highly productive and deeply humane company,” said Eric McCann, field service manager for Bimbo Bakeries. “We are continuously looking for new ways to preserve the environment and reduce our carbon footprint. Incorporating these vehicles into our fleet is an important step toward reducing our fleet’s dependence on fossil fuels and we look forward to introducing the EPIC platform into our supply chain.”
The electric delivery vans will be fitted with Utilimaster’s step van bodies, designed for delivery and service vehicles, and will feature a highly modular cargo area and multiple door configurations, providing maximum versatility, Motiv said.
“Utilimaster is encouraged by the strong market response to our Motiv all-electric F-59 offering,” said Chad Heminover, president of Utilimaster. “It really comes as no surprise to see the rapid expansion of demand for these cost-effective, zero-emissions vehicles into an increasing cross-section of commercial fleet deployments."