APC funding awarded to develop electric fire engine

Equipmake has been awarded £350,000 in funding from the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) for the co-development of an electric fire truck.

The project, called ZEPA (Zero Emission Pumping Appliance), is a collaboration between Equipmake, emergency vehicle manufacturer Emergency One, the London Fire Brigade and Cenex.

With funding from the APC’s Advanced Route to Market Demonstrator competition (ARMD3), the consortium, which is led by Equipmake, will now develop an all-electric zero emission fire truck over the coming 12 months, with the vehicle being debuted at the Cenex Expo event in September next year.

A key innovation for this new vehicle will be a ‘daisy chain’ energy management system, created by Equipmake. It is anticipated that this technology will have other applications in addition to fire trucks.

Following the fire truck’s debut at the CENEX Expo 2025, the vehicle will be trialled by the London Fire Brigade.

Ian Foley, CEO of Equipmake, said: “On behalf of the consortium, we are delighted that project ZEPA has been selected for crucial funding which will support the development of a much-needed fully electric specialist emergency vehicle.

“Equipmake is a sector-leader, not just in the design, development and manufacture of electric powertrain technology for use in heavy vehicles, but also in innovations in energy management.

“Our ‘daisy chain’ system has multiple applications – we are excited to bring it to market. We would like to thank the APC – this new grant is a further endorsement of our expertise.” 

A tier one supplier and developer of electrification technology for the commercial vehicle industry, Equipmake offers a wide range of proprietary electric motors, alongside in-house designed, developed, and manufactured ASIL-D certified inverters, technology aimed at the bus, coach, truck and off-highway vehicle sector, which is rapidly transitioning from ICE to zero emission vehicles (ZEVs).

Over the past two years, Equipmake has signed multiple contracts with major brands, strategic partnerships including an agreement with Perkins, a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar, to develop a bespoke, heavy-duty hybrid electric system, featuring its high torque density electric motor and inverter technologies, and establish initial production capability.

Equipmake also has an agreement in place to license certain products from its range of electric drive motors, inverter, and electric powertrain technology to Sona Comstar – a global automotive systems and components manufacturer, headquartered in India – for applications in electric cars, buses, commercial vehicles and off-road vehicles in India, Thailand and other select South Asian countries. 

In addition, the Snetterton-based company has strategic technology supply arrangements for its lightweight, high-performance motors in the aerospace sector with H55, Vertical Aerospace and, in the space sector, Gilmour Space, alongside supply of its high-performance ASIL-D certified, silicon carbide inverters to electric hypercar brand, Rimac, in the automotive world.