General Motors says it has completed its first production builds of its subsidiary BrightDrop’s EV600 electric commercial vehicles, marking the fastest concept-to-commercialization process in company history.

It also announced it is expanding the BrightDrop line to include a medium-sized electric commercial vehicle, the EV410. BrightDrop will eventually produce the electric vehicles in Ingersoll, Ont, when plant reconfigurations are completed in November 2022.

The first EV600 to roll off the line was shipped to FedEx Express in time for the holiday shipping season. The new EV410 is designed for shorter, more frequent trips, and Verizon will be the first to take delivery.

“Getting our first electric vehicles on the streets in record time before another peak holiday shipping season is the best gift we could receive this year, especially when we consider the supply chain headwinds the world is facing right now,” said Travis Katz, BrightDrop president and CEO. “This is a strong statement to the market of how our unique operations setup, which marries the cutting-edge innovation, agility and focus of a technology startup with the scale and manufacturing might of a major automaker, can deliver real value to both customers and the planet.”

The EV600 was brought to production in just 20 months, GM says. It also says operators can expect fuel savings of about US$7,000 per year compared to a diesel.

The BrightDrop EV410 has many of the same features as the larger model, offers more than 400 cubic feet of cargo area, with a shorter wheelbase of just over 150 inches and a total length of less than 20 feet, capable of fitting into a standard parking spot.

The company says it’s ideal for smaller payload, frequent deliveries or as a service vehicle. It will have a range of up to 400 km per charge.