KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Eaton’s hybrid systems have reached the 30 million mile mark, the company has announced.

Eaton’s hybrid systems have racked up more than 30 million miles in service worldwide, on delivery trucks, buses, refuse and utility vehicles as well as other commercial applications, according to the company. It has more than 2,400 systems in service.

“Eaton hybrid commercial vehicles are true workhorses that are helping our customers complete the job at hand while also helping them reduce their fuel consumption and level of pollutants,” said Dimitri Kazarinoff, vice-president and general manager of Eaton’s Hybrid Power Systems Division. “This milestone has taken 10 years to achieve, but as the technology becomes even more mainstream and the benefits better understood, we are confident that we can reach the next 30 million miles in a fraction of the time.”

Of the 30 million miles achieved, FedEx alone has accumulated more than five million miles on its hybrid delivery trucks, Eaton claims.

“Together we are demonstrating that hybrids are very reliable at reducing fuel consumption and emissions,” said John Formisano, vice-president, global vehicles, FedEx Express. “Since 2004, with the help of Eaton, we have reduced our fuel use by nearly 200,000 gallons and carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 2,000 metric tonnes. This is the equivalent of removing more than 300 cars from the road annually.”

Eaton says its hybrid systems deliver fuel savings of up to 35%, idle-time reductions of up to 87% during work-site operations and extended brake life and of course, emissions reductions.