The current trend these days is for many car manufacturers to turn to hybrid vehicle design for their companies. The increasing cost of gasoline and growing environmental awareness is driving car manufacturers to create a more efficient and environmentally-friendly car. It would appear that we have only seen such applications with small and midsized vehicles. In reality, back in 2005 there was a feasibility study to determine the viability of using hybrid power on bucket trucks.

Large Fuel Consumption Needs

The reason why a bucket truck is a good target for this newer type of power is because of the copious amount of fuel they consume in day-to-day operations. Whenever the vehicle’s boom is moved and in a lifted position, the engine has to keep running to provide power for the hydraulic system to operate the arm holding the bucket.

Keeping the hydraulic boom lifted for several hours also means keeping the engine operating for the same number of hours to keep the boom moving and maintain its working height. Whenever the boom is used, the engine consumes fuel and this adds greatly to the truck's operating costs.

Necessity for Alternate Power Source

In order to gain efficiency and lower the operational cost, an alternate power source is installed on the vehicle. Using an electric motor powered by batteries, the vehicle can drive on roads as well as provide power for the truck's hydraulic system during its operation.

Operating Efficiency

The hybrid bucket truck has proven to be very fuel-efficient during operations. The electric motor drives the hydraulic system so that the engine can be turned off during the boom’s operation. Once the battery's power has been drained, the vehicle’s main engine automatically turns on and takes over the hydraulic system so the work can continue without interruption. The truck's battery then automatically recharges once the engine takes over; it can also be recharged by plugging it into a conventional power outlet.

Quieter Operation

Aside from the fuel efficiency that this type of vehicle offers, whenever the electric motor takes over to power the truck's hydraulic system, the result is a quieter operation, since there is not any engine- humming sound in the background. The absence of the engine's noise is an added bonus since it means the operator and the person working in the bucket can hear better and therefore exchange information much more easily as they work.

Overall, it is estimated that a hybrid bucket truck will only consume fuel about half the amount of fuel than that of a conventional similar vehicle. So far, the hybrid bucket trial has been successful in terms of gaining fuel efficiency with the reduced noise emission being a bonus feature.

Major Obstacles to Overcome

Despite the optimistic outlook of the hybrid bucket truck and increased fuel efficiency, there are still some major obstacles that need to be overcome. One of the obstacles is the increased production cost since adding an electric engine and equipping the vehicle with more battery capability means redesigning the truck's components at an added production cost. Even the battery's long-term maintenance cost is an issue.

Although it is still uncommon to see these new hybrid-powered vehicles in use by local power companies, there are some major manufacturers who have taken the initiative and have realized the potential of hybrid-powered bucket trucks. Even small electric cooperatives in Pennsylvania have started utilizing these vehicles as their flagship to promote power conservation. So far, the future of this type of hybrid technology has been very promising. Only time, and the potential for continually-increasing fuel prices, will tell whether this hybrid-powered vehicle will achieve its goal of being the primary type of bucket truck in use!