Cummins Starts Production of Tier 4 Interim Engines

Sept. 24, 2010
Latest versions of off-highway engines ready for new EPA, EU regulations in January

Cummins Inc. reports it has achieved “a major industry milestone” with the start of commercial production of the first EPA Tier 4 Interim engines at its Rocky Mount, N.C., engine manufacturing plant; as well as with the launch of production of EU Stage IIIB certified engines at its Darlington, England, plant.

These new QSB6.7 and QSL9 engines will conform to new emissions regulations that take effect January 1, 2011, for engines over 173 horsepower (129 kW). The new standards call for emissions particulate matter to be reduced by 90 percent and oxides of nitrogen by almost 50 percent compared, with the current Tier 3 and Stage IIIA standard.

Cummins designs, manufactures, and services engines and related technologies, like fuel systems, controls, air handling, filtration, emission solutions and electrical power generation systems.

Besides the EPA and European Union (EU) regulatory approvals, the QSB6.7 and QSL9 engines also earned California Air Resources Board (ARB) certification to enable 50-state compliance.

The QSB6.7 engine is certified to a higher power output of 300 hp (224 kW), while the QSL9 engine increases output up to 400 hp (298 kW). The 6.7-liter and the 9-liter engines have received EPA and EU emissions certification as integral systems with Cummins Particulate Filter exhaust after-treatment, which allows a significant level of integration and packaging efficiency.

Before the engine’s build specification for production, the QSB6.7 and QSL9 underwent an extensive series of field tests on commercial operations to validate performance and in-service reliability. Cummins reports the engines achieved improvements in fuel efficiency and engine response time of up to 5%.

“With the production release of the QSB6.7 and QSL9 engines for 2011 emissions, Cummins builds on its early leadership in Tier 4 development work, concept installation and field testing,” stated Cummins Off-Highway Businesss executive director Hugh Foden.

“Although much of the Tier 4 emissions technology is new to the off-highway industry, it is not new to Cummins. Key enablers, such as the Cummins Particulate Filter after-treatment, exhaust gas recirculation and variable geometry turbochargers were available from within Cummins own technology portfolio and successfully used with our EPA 2007 on-highway engines,” Foden continued.

He said this technical foundation allowed Cummins to speed up its Tier 4 Interim program and exceed emissions levels, and to focus on performance deliverables. “We have done what we said we would do by optimizing machine integration, improving fuel efficiency and enhancing engine response,” added Foden.

The 6.7-liter and 9-liter engines have been widely adopted for off-highway vehicles. Over 30 power ratings will be available for Tier 4 Interim and Stage IIIB applications, with numerous installation configurations for construction, agricultural, and industrial equipment.