BENTONVILLE, Ark. – U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm has announced that FR8relay will receive $206,468 as part of 259 Department of Energy grants totaling $53 million to 210 small businesses in 38 states.
The awards include projects relating to particle accelerators and fusion technology, applied nanoscience, quantum information applications and dark matter research, along with a wide range of other efforts.
“Supporting small businesses will ensure we are tapping into all of America’s talent to develop clean energy technologies that will help us tackle the climate crisis,” Steve Binkley, acting director of the DOE’s Office of Science, said.
The nation relies on trucking to move 72.5% of its freight, but the current model of long-haul trucking leads to wasted emissions, wasted fuel, wasted capacity and an untenable job for truck drivers creating a human capacity gap.
“FR8relay’s novel relay mobility solution could reduce emissions, increase mobility energy productivity, and increase truck utilization, while vastly improving truck driving jobs and creating economic development opportunities for economically distressed communities,” according to a news release.
FR8relay’s Phase I DOE SBIR project focuses on engaging relay trucking stakeholders in economically disadvantaged communities to collect critical end-user and community design inputs.
“Stakeholder buy-in is critical, not only to achieving just and equitable energy transition, but to successful transfer of technology to customers,” FR8relay co-founder Deme Yuan said.
“We’re honored to be among the 210 awardees of this SBIR program and are eager to get started on the project. Stay tuned for more information about our community and industry partners on this project.”
The Trucker News Staff produces engaging content for not only TheTrucker.com, but also The Trucker Newspaper, which has been serving the trucking industry for more than 30 years. With a focus on drivers, the Trucker News Staff aims to provide relevant, objective content pertaining to the trucking segment of the transportation industry. The Trucker News Staff is based in Little Rock, Arkansas.
