The XL Electric Curbtender eQuantum features a Ford F-600 chassis cab and 6,000-pound payload capacity.

Curbtender, Cedar Falls, Iowa, debuted the XL Electric Curbtender eQuantum refuse collection truck at WasteExpo, which was May 9-12 in Las Vegas.

The eQuantum was produced in partnership with XL Fleet, Boston. It is built on a Ford F-600 chassis and offers the advantages of Curbtender’s top-selling small rear-loading refuse vehicle, the Quantum, with none of the noise or emissions of a diesel-powered model, according to the company.

The eQuantum features a patented swing panel packing mechanism instead of a traditional slide panel, allowing the packer to clear more material in a shorter time and with a smaller hopper requirement, Curbtender says.

It also features an XL Electric propulsion system with a top-of-body battery pack to maximize the flexibility of the body design. However, the XL Electric propulsion system retains much of the Ford F-600 chassis and driveline for ease of maintenance. The eQuantum offers an anticipated range of 100 miles on a full charge, Curbtender says.

The truck has a 169-inch wheelbase for tight turning capability and a 6,000-to-6,500-pound refuse payload capacity.

XL Fleet provides a suite of charging and power solutions to support fleet electrification through its XL Grid division.

For more information, visit www.curbtender.com/green-solutions. 

Mark Butterfield has joined the company.

The company says its purchase of Quentic will enhance its environmental software offering.

AMCS, a supplier of integrated cloud-based software and vehicle technology for the environmental, utilities, waste, recycling and resource industries, says it has entered into an agreement to acquire Quentic, a leading provider of software as a service for environment, health, safety and quality and environmental, social and governance management. AMCS, which is headquartered in Limerick, Ireland, has not disclosed the amount of the transaction, which it says is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in the coming weeks.

AMCS says the purchase will broaden its expertise in the environmental services industry globally and enable the company to continue to expand its customer base. With a combined 4,000 customers supported by more than 1,000 employees, AMCS is on a trajectory to achieve run rate revenues greater than 180 million euros by the end of the year, the company says in the news release announcing the transaction.

AMCS has offices in North America, Europe and Australia and employs more than 800 people across 12 countries. AMCS is a global leader of integrated software and vehicle technology for the environmental, recycling and resource industries and offers optimization solutions to the broader transport and logistics market.

The Quentic platform comprises 10 individually combinable modules and offers a way for companies to manage health and safety, risks and audits, incidents and observations, hazardous chemicals, control of work, legal compliance, online instructions, processes, environmental management and sustainability.

The company employs more than 250 people and has branch offices in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Spain and Italy.

Together, AMCS and Quentic are now positioned to provide more advanced digital solutions to a wider industry, which will enrich their customers’ operations and impact the environment for a healthier, cleaner and more sustainable world, AMCS says. The integration of AMCS and Quentic enables customers on both sides to benefit from a wide range of solutions that support end-to-end standardization and optimization of business processes to increase efficiencies, streamline operations and work toward a safe and sustainable future.

“AMCS and Quentic are very aligned with the mission to drive an environmentally sustainable future,” says Jimmy Martin, CEO of AMCS. “A net-zero carbon future depends on a very connected and circular approach across the supply chain. We are thrilled to bring the technology from Quentic into the AMCS portfolio of solutions and can now move forward with a focus on influencing the entire supply chain, offering smarter outcomes from automating and digitizing their businesses—reducing waste as much as possible.”

Quentic CEO Markus Becker, Chief Operations Officer Sebastian Mönnich and Chief Technology Officer Hardy Menzel founded the company as EcoIntense in 2007 to provide software for environmental management. Today, Quentic provides what AMCS describes as “a holistic and modular software as a service solution to manage all tasks and processes related to environmental, health, safety and quality management, as well as corporate responsibility-related areas in environment, social and governance.”

“We have built Quentic on the values of making a meaningful contribution to people, society and the environment,” Markus Becker, CEO of Quentic, says. “Therefore, we are excited to have found a partner in AMCS who fully aligns with our mission to digitally empower companies across the globe to manage people, business and environmental processes sustainably at all levels. Together with AMCS, the Quentic management team will continue to shape the future.”

In connection with the company’s purchase of Berlin-based Quentic, Clearlake Capital Group LP, Santa Monica, California, is making a new equity investment in AMCS alongside new equity investments from existing investors Insight Partners, Ireland Strategic Investment Fund and Highland Europe.

Alliance to End Plastic Waste and Swiss investor announce fund designed to reach $500 million in capitalization.

The Alliance to End Plastic Waste, Singapore, and Lombard Odier Investment Managers (LOIM), Switzerland, have announced their intention to launch what they call a circular plastic fund.

The fund will aim to raise $500 million from institutional and other investors for scalable solutions to remove plastic waste from the environment, increase recycling, and drive the global transition toward a circular economy for the plastic value chain,” the Alliance says. The Alliance also says it will “serve as a cornerstone investor in the fund.”

“Our goal in partnering with Lombard Odier in relation to a circular plastic strategy is to grow investments in solutions that can help end plastic waste and contribute to a circular economy,” says Jacob Duer, president and CEO of the Alliance. “The strategy harnesses the collective intelligence of the plastic value chain and connects it with capital, bringing much needed solutions to scale. I am confident this will help focus financial market attention on the investment opportunity that plastic circularity represents, and help to catalyze multiple sources of financing for investments in circular solutions for plastic waste.”

Jean-Pascal Porcherot, co-head of LOIM, says “is strategy presents a compelling investment opportunity. It will target opportunities across all segments of the private equity spectrum - including direct and co-investments investments - with the objective to reduce plastic waste issues worldwide and deliver attractive financial returns and sustainability outcomes.”

The Alliance says it has mandated LOIM to “build and manage the fund with the objective of generating positive environmental, social, and economic impact together with attractive financial returns.”

The organization cites “industry estimates” that the transition to a circular value chain for plastic packaging represents a potential $1 trillion global economic opportunity by 2030.

The new fund will aim to target opportunities involving collection and sorting infrastructure, technology-enabled recycling infrastructure, design solutions for improved plastic durability, reuse and recyclability. “It will also aim to drive innovation in plastic chemistry and production which can simplify or make end of life treatment easier or more effective,” says the Alliance.

Jim Fitterling, chairman and CEO of United States-based Dow and chair of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, says, “The systemic transformation needed to enable a plastic circular economy requires societal, infrastructure and technology innovations. This strategy presents a meaningful opportunity to put the plastic waste management ecosystem firmly on the agendas of institutional investors to accelerate the transition to a global plastic circular economy.”

Company finalizes purchase of Lordstown Motors and says it will build pickup trucks at Ohio facility.

The recent completion of a factory acquisition seems to suggest that the formative electric vehicle (EV) development and assembly market in the United States will continue to include the traditional Great Lakes region.

Taiwan-based Hon Hai Technology Group, known more commonly as Foxconn, and Ohio-based Lordstown Motors Corp. (LMC) have announced the signing of a contract manufacturing agreement and a joint venture (JV) agreement for product development.

The potential alliance was announced last November. At that time, Foxconn and Lordstown entered into an asset purchase agreement (APA) regarding LMC’s production plant in Lordstown, Ohio. That transaction has now been approved by regulatory authorities, Foxconn says.

“In the future, Ohio will be Hon Hai’s important electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing hub in North America,” states Foxconn, which describes itself as “the world’s largest technology manufacturer and service provider.”

Pioneering EV maker Tesla has placed many of its investments in California, Nevada and, most recently, Texas. Some of the traditional automakers, however, are investing in the Great Lakes region.

In January, General Motors announced two sizable EV-related investments in Michigan and another at a plant near Buffalo, New York. Ultium Cells LLC, a partnership between GM and LG Energy Solution, also is building a battery production site in Lordstown. 

The JV and contract manufacturing agreements between Foxconn and LMC have Foxconn investing $55 million. It also has the partners jointly using a “Mobility in Harmony (MIH) Open EV Platform” to co-design and develop vehicle programs for the global commercial vehicle market, Foxconn says.

Foxconn says its “expertise in hardware-software integration and production management of electronics manufacturing” can combine with LMC’s automaking experience to bring the electric pickup truck Endurance model into mass production. LMC had been trying to produce the Endurance on its own when it ran into questions about its representation of preorders in mid-2021.

“The collaboration between Hon Hai and Lordstown is a classic example of joint effort between startup EV manufacturer and an information and communications service provider,” Foxconn says.

The company says the 400 LMC employees will become Hon Hai or Foxconn employees with the transaction now completed. “By collaborating with different automotive OEMs, Hon Hai will offer its employees in North America exciting and challenging opportunities to develop their career paths in the field of EV,” Foxconn says.