2011 marks the 125^th anniversary of the invention of the gasoline-powered automobile by Karl Benz, and Mercedes-Benz has been celebrating his legacy and contributions to the automotive industry with a special round-the-world-tour of its latest innovation, the zero-emission fuel cell vehicle.   

A Reason to Party and Celebrate!

Mercedes-Benz landed in Vancouver on March 17, 2011, to demonstrate their new fuel cell cars before continuing their zero-emissions journey to Australia, China, Russia and Northern Europe. They also announced that as a major partner in the Automotive Fuel Cell Cooperative (AFCC), they have chosen Vancouver, the recognized birthplace of the automotive fuel cell, as their new home for a fuel cell stack manufacturing plant. This new manufacturing facility is creating jobs and making fuel cell stacks for Mercedes’ Canada’s pre-commercial fuel cell vehicles, scheduled to be unveiled in 2013/14, with commercial sales expected in 2015. 

If B.C. builds them, will you drive them?

While recognizing the fine contributions of the automobile to family freedom and mobility, today’s environmentally-conscious consumers are excited about the progress of cleaner, greener and increasingly cost-effective alternatives like fuel cells, which have minimal impacts on Mother Earth. Mercedes-Benz parent company, Daimler, in partnership with Ford and Ballard Power Systems, have perfected the application of fuel cell technology for commercial use. 

A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy of a fuel like hydrogen, natural gas, methanol, or gasoline and an oxidant (air or oxygen) into electricity. In principle, a fuel cell operates like a battery. Unlike a battery however, a fuel cell does not run down or require recharging and will continue to produce electricity and heat as long as fuel and an oxidizer are supplied. Individual fuel cells are combined into a fuel “stack” for use in commercial vehicles.

On its own, fuel cell stack technology produces no emissions, and releases only water vapour. Learn how fuel stack technology works and the infrastructure needed to make this a clean energy investment for your business.

Stacking Up Strong

B.C.’s leading advantages in clean technology come naturally. B.C. has the skills and talent, competitive business climate, and strategically located hydro-electric power facilities that enable hydrogen production for fuel cell vehicles.  One plant in North Vancouver could power 20,000 fuel cell cars a year according to AFCC estimates. Learn more about how British Columbia is attracting more business in environmental and clean technology .

B.C.’s advanced manufacturing and innovation sector offers a growing pool of more than 50,000 top-notch engineering, technical and production workers, as well as annual savings of up to 15 per cent for labour, facilities, power and taxes compared with U.S. locations. The AFCC suggests the fuel cell industry already employs 1200 people in British Columbia with skills and expertise that give the province a global leadership position!

Get in the Business

It’s easy to get connected to B.C.’s clean technology and investment opportunities. Check out the B.C.’s Manufacturers’ Directory and our B.C. Business Network to start building strategic business opportunities in this sector.

Make your next investment in B.C. and our green, clean hydrogen machines! 

Hold the Date

Did you know? Vancouver’s next Fuel Cells technology event is coming soon! Mark your calendar for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells 2011 at the Vancouver Convention Centre May 15-18, 2011.  Canada’s premier hydrogen and fuel cell event is welcoming an estimated 1,000 participants from Germany, Japan, Denmark, Korea, India, China and the US.

Tell us – would you drive a hydrogen-fuel automobile over a battery electric, hybrid electric or internal combustion engine?

British Columbia has long been a leader in developing policies to address climate change and is a big booster of automotive fuel cells, which are among the most viable technologies for long-term emissions reductions.  But we really dominate the competition! Did you know that while there are centres of fuel research in other parts of Canada, Vancouver is the national hub for groundbreaking research and development? Or that B.C. is recognized internationally as a global leader in hydrogen and fuel cell research, development and early stage commercialization?

British Columbia’s expertise  was on display at the  7^th Annual International Fuel Cell Expo, the world’s largest hydrogen and fuel cell industry event in Tokyo, Japan this month.  B.C.’s trade and investment representatives were there to introduce companies like Ballard, Greenlight Innovation, and Powertech Labs to the estimated 135,000 renewable energy professionals who were in attendance. They were joined by the Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association and the National Research Council (NRC), huge players in supporting the research and commercialization of fuel cell technologies.  In fact, NRC’s early strategic investments have been essential for the growth in the B.C. fuel cell cluster, which is poised to seize a significant share of a global market projected to be worth over US$8.5 billion by 2016.

Fuel Cell Leaders

Fuel cells are expected to be a key technology in ensuring zero emissions vehicles (ZEVs) can be  market-ready. B.C. is also home to the Automotive Fuel Cell Cooperation, established in 2008 in Burnaby, which is a joint-venture private company owned by Daimler AG, the Ford Motor Company and Ballard Power Systems Inc. to develop fuel cell stacks for automotive application. Daimler and Ford are the only automobile companies who have joined forces to develop fuel cell technology and have more than 150 fuel cell vehicles on the road today.  Check out the 125-day journey of three Mercedes Benz fuel cell cars that are travelling the globe and watch for them in Vancouver!

Heavy duty diesel vehicles are the biggest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions on our roads.  Ballard Power Systems, ISE Corp., and the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority (Translink) are working to change that with the commercialization of fuel cell hybrid buses. Ballard and ISE will design, assemble, and test key sub-components for the fuel cell module and hybrid electric drive train to completely eliminate all emissions from bus tailpipes.

Getting the Infrastructure in Place

HTEC Hydrogen Technology & Energy Corp., of Delta has been working on improving hydrogen production and delivery systems to make it more practical for broader public use of ZEVs. They have been testing hydrogen energy infrastructure solutions, including hydrogen purification technology, a hydrogen liquefaction facility in North Vancouver, and a combined hydrogen and compressed natural gas transit bus fuelling station in Port Coquitlam. The liquefaction and fuelling facilities will be a major addition to British Columbia’s Hydrogen Highway initiative.

Have you ever driven a fuel-cell powered vehicle? Tell us about it!  Better yet, check out the British Columbia’s expertise and tell us what you think the next big technology invention will be in this exciting field!

Winning over new customers is the market strategy for four top-notch B.C. companies participating in CeBIT, the world’s largest digital IT and telecommunications trade expo this week in Hannover, Germany. With more than 4,000 attendees expected from over 100 countries, B.C. companies like Atimi Software, CMAEON, POSH Mfg. and Corinex Communications will be pitching their technology solutions in the hopes of gaining market share with new global partners.

If you’re a Canucks fan, you probably already know about Vancouver-based Atimi Software! The brilliant minds at Atimi designed the Canucks APP to help you keep tabs on the score, watch your favourite Canucks video, or chat with other fans on the Canucks.com message board.    They deliver software and information technology solutions for all kinds of cool businesses and recently launched the iPad APP the Macworld Daily Reader, the must-have source on all Apple products. Check out Atimi Software and see if there is an APP there you like!

Victoria-based CMAEON is totally customer-focused and all about helping companies connect to new markets. They design and develop tools for entrepreneurs and small businesses to automate their business processes in all kinds of fields from health to real estate. They recently unveiled their flagship cloud-based solution 1to1Real™, which integrates marketing, sales and customer relationship management using artificial intelligence to automate critical tasks.  Take a feature tour at CMAEON for yourself and follow their progress at CeBIT!

Every time you swipe your access card at work, pay at a restaurant, or do your banking at an ATM, you are likely using home-grown technology from POSH Mfg.   For more than 20 years, POSH has been a leading manufacturer in Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, Access Control and Point of Sale (POS) Solutions in Canada. They serve thousands of businesses all over the world, helping governments, banks, law enforcement agencies, and the retail sector  manage access to their services. Check out their products!

When it comes to speedy service, Corinex Communications are some of the fastest in Canada!  Honoured on Deloitte’s 2010 Canadian Technology Fast 50, they are not only fast-growing but they develop high-speed IP communications systems for some of the world’s largest telecom, utility, and system integration companies. They are well-known on six continents for building speedy, secure, scalable and cost-effective networks. See what their customers have to say!

If you have experience with any of these companies, why not tell us about them!