With the Zeus Electric Chassis (Zeus) first production vehicle #SO-00001 taking center stage, the California Mobility Center (CMC) hosted a gala showcase featuring their client success stories and marking the first year in their Ramp-Up Factory.
Attended by over 300 guests, including national media personnel, California state government officials, City of Sacramento officials, Sacramento State University leadership, representatives from leading automotive OEM and Tier 1 suppliers, early-stage company founders, and over 30 top utility company executives from across the U.S., the event celebrated the growth of the CMC in the eMobility space.
As Robert Grinstead, founder and CEO of Zeus, noted, “the CMC’s ability to provide support and networking connections to start-ups such as Zeus has been invaluable. It’s been a great experience working with their team to accomplish together what we have in the past year.”
It is those connections which brought Zeus and the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) together. The purchase of five Zeus all-electric class 5 work trucks is an important part of SMUD’s ambitious zero-carbon goals. As SMUD CEO Paul Lau has indicated, finding a good fit for the utility in the Class 4-6 vehicle was a challenge. The team at SMUD is eager to put the trucks to work in the field. Delivery of the first trucks from the Zeus facility will be in Q2 2022, with final inspection taking place at the CMC facility.
As a pilot program, the experience and data gathered from the SMUD usage will be shared with other utilities in an effort to mitigate the risk and accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles in the vocational work truck market. Another CMC client, E Source, is working with SMUD and Zeus as a third-party evaluator to validate the technology and develop a process for sharing this data and information.
The CMC event was an all-day affair featuring a preshow media tour, speakers, and the opportunity for many CMC clients to showcase their eMobility products. Utility company executives attending the Large Public Power Council meeting were also given a private tour. The day was capped off by a formal unveiling of the Zeus truck with a ceremonial “handing over of the keys” to Paul Lau and other dignitaries.
Robert Grinstead, on behalf of Zeus, was presented with a special award from the CMC, which read “The CMC proudly commemorates our first client Zeus Electric Chassis on their first successful commercial transaction in partnership with SMUD."
Source: Zeus
