Ricardo increases presence in California

Growing demand for clean energy technology has helped Ricardo increase its presence in California.

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At the conclusion of its first and highly successful year of operations, the Ricardo Santa Clara Technical Center is actively supporting several major heavy equipment manufacturers and their suppliers for aftertreatment systems, gasoline, diesel, dual-fuel and natural gas powered engines, and fuel cell technical support and services. The laboratory provides engineering, testing and analysis to help calibrate engine systems and their exhaust aftertreatment to deliver optimum fuel economy and performance with minimum emissions.

With the ever-growing demand to reduce emissions and improve fuel economy, the combined aftertreatment and combustion expertise available at the new facility adds exceptional value to Ricardo's offerings in a region that is leading the country - and arguably the world - in low NOx and greenhouse gas emissions related projects and regulation. This form of work can be expensive and challenging for customers to carry out in-house in a timely fashion. The services provided by the Ricardo Santa Clara facility are thus proving highly attractive to manufacturers and engine suppliers as they strive to meet or beat emission limits, helping them reduce product life cycle cost and accelerate time to market. The 20,000 square foot facility reinforces Ricardo's leadership in aftertreatment test and development capabilities, while engineers at the facility add more than 25 years of catalyst expertise.

Test facilities available at the Ricardo Santa Clara Technical Center include:

  • Hydrothermal ovens used to rapidly age catalysts for regulatory testing of new materials
  • A synthetic gas reactor lab to model engine aftertreatment components and perform next generation catalyst research - targeted to reduce cost and improve performance
  • A full-scale component lab that can replicate engine testing conditions for engine prototypes
  • A fuel cell lab to test hydrogen fuel cell performance as companies strive to lower costs, improve durability and performance of this technology for electric vehicles

"We are delighted to see our new facility in the heart of Silicon Valley grow so rapidly in its first year of operations," says Clive Wotton, President of Ricardo Inc. "The Ricardo Santa Clara Technical Center has significantly expanded our ability to serve our clients with world class aftertreatment engineering and testing capabilities. In doing so we can help our customers in the commercial vehicle and off-highway equipment sectors improve the environmental performance of their products while reducing their life cycle costs of operation. We plan to grow further in Santa Clara with leading edge fuel cell technology for zero emission vehicles, and leverage the location to expand our rapidly growing portfolio for clean energy and connected vehicle technologies."

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