Commercial electric trucks take center stage at work truck show in Indianapolis

Shyft Group, one of the nation's largest manufacturers of industrial work trucks, plans to debut an electric class 5 crew cab truck Wednesday at the NTEA Work Truck Show in Indianapolis.

The Blue Arc-brand truck has a walk-in-van style cab with a sliding door, seating for six and room to set up a mobile workstation – an unusual layout for a class 5 truck.

"It's about flexibility, innovation and creating unique solutions for our customers," Shyft CEO Daryl Adams said in a statement prior to Wednesday's reveal.

He told Automotive News that one configuration of the truck would be ideal for moving companies. An entire crew, he said, could ride to the job in the truck. Today's moving trucks usually only have room for the driver and one or two passengers.

The vehicle's electric powertrain, which delivers about 200 miles per charge, helped enable the truck's interior design. The flat floor, for instance, made adding the extra seats possible since there is no hump for the transmission.

Shyft said the truck is being built with a liquid-cooled lithium ion battery pack and will be available with an optional 450-watt-hour integrated solar roof package. With a level 2 charger, the truck can be recharged in two to six hours. The truck will be available in a number of configurations and as a chassis that can underpin electric buses, motorcoaches and shuttles.

Shyft, formerly known as Spartan Motors, plans to manufacture the new truck at its Charlotte, Mich., plant, which is undergoing an expansion.

The version of the truck debuting at the NTEA show was designed by Shyft's DuraMag division and has a payload capacity between 6,000 and 10,000 pounds.

Shyft has not discussed pricing.

Also at the NTEA show this week:

Workhorse Group Inc. is debuting a class 5 and class 6 electric step van, the W56. The vehicle can haul up to 10,000 pounds and travel 150 miles on a charge, Workhorse said. The body has a lowered step-in and wide door to make ingress and egress easier. The cargo box can hold measures just over 1,000 cubic feet.

"The W56 marks the first official vehicle designed and produced under our revamped team," Rick Dauch, Workhorse CEO said in a statement. "It is the culmination of many hours of hard work combined with the process enhancements implemented over the last 18 months."

Workhorse plans to begin production of the W56 at its Union City, Ind., plant in the third quarter.

Mullen Automotive, the Brea, Calif., startup that swallowed the remains of Electric Last Mile Solutions and bought a controlling interest in Bollinger Motors, is showing two commercial EV trucks at NTEA.

First up is a class 1 EV cargo van, perhaps the size of a Ford Transit Connect. The other vehicle is a class 3 medium-duty tilt cab box truck. Mullen did not provide any technical details ahead of the vehicles' debut. The company said both trucks will be launched later in the year.

"NTEA is the largest commercial truck show in North America and is a perfect platform for Mullen Commercial," Mullen CEO David Michery said in a statement. "This show gives us the opportunity to establish the Mullen Commercial brand with two great offerings that are coming to market this year."

NTEA's Work Truck Week 2023 ends Friday and is taking place at the Indiana Convention Center. This year there are 511 exhibitors displaying the industry's latest products and technology.