The Council’s investment in the development of new propane-powered products has made it an incubator of technology that helps Americans save money and cut emissions while contributing to the nation’s energy security.
Research & Development
The propane industry is committed to maintaining the highest quality fuel possible. This PERC program offers as-needed testing of fuel samples to help marketers ensure consistent fuel quality. The fuel sampling program is accepting fuel samples from marketers for testing. This thorough expert analysis can help marketers rule out fuel quality as a factor in equipment performance issues.
PERC’s product-development partnerships with manufacturers cover virtually every market that propane serves.
Propane has a wide variety of uses in agriculture, ranging from building heat and crop drying to industrial engines and flame weeding. PERC has worked with many different equipment manufacturers, distributors, and dealers to bring new products to market and increase demand for propane-powered products in the field.
“Efficient, reliable, powerful equipment is extremely important to agricultural operations. Propane-powered equipment delivers. Plus, propane is environmentally friendly and portable. We are continually working to improve technologies that advance energy efficiency in ag,” said Cinch Munson, PERC’s senior vice president, business development. “By working with leading equipment developers, we help ensure that the energy needs in agriculture are met as cost-effectively as possible.”
PERC worked with Kohler to develop a new generator for residential and commercial use, the 30REZGT. It’s the fourth in the line of the company’s propane-powered mobile generators.
According to Jesse Marcus, PERC’s director of residential and commercial business development, Kohler’s mobile generator product line allows consumers and professionals in a wide variety of markets to experience American-made propane’s many unique benefits.
“These mobile generators can provide the rental, commercial, construction, and utility sectors with reliable back-up power in virtually any situation,” Marcus said. “And, because the generators can run on clean, cost-effective propane, they also offer optimum performance and power while ensuring a cleaner, safer environment.”
On-road transportation remains a top investment target for PERC’s R&D program. In 2017, PERC helped celebrate the delivery of the 10,000th propane autogas Blue Bird school bus. Today, nearly 850 school districts throughout the United States are operating more than 15,500 propane autogas school buses on a daily basis. In all, almost 950,000 students ride propane autogas school buses to and from school.
“More and more school districts across the country are facing tighter transportation budgets and they must use their resources more wisely,” said Tucker Perkins, president and CEO of the Propane Education & Research Council. “Propane autogas school buses help districts lower their fuel budgets, but the benefits don’t stop there. Propane school buses improve passenger safety and reduce harmful emissions compared with their diesel bus counterparts, too.”
