naftc

NAFTC In the News
2023-04-21 01:30 - 14:00 (America/New_York) | WV
NAFTC Interim director and long NAFTC member David Favre, dean of transportation at Wake Tech, North Carolina’s largest community college were interviewed by CBS News reporter, Kara Corte (covering climate change and energy).

The topic of the interview: The future of the auto industry is electric. Will mechanics be out of work?

Read the article here

Rural Reimagined: Building an EV Ecosystem and Green Economy for Transforming Lives in Economically Distressed Appalachia
2022-11-22 11:00 - 15:00 | Fairmont-Marion County Transit Authority, 400 Quincy Street, Fairmont, WV, 26554, United States
About the Rural Reimagined Project:
Dr. Pingen Chen PI, Assistant Professor Department of Mechanical Engineering Tennessee Technological University Trina WafleCo-PI, Interim Director, National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium & Assistant Director, WVU Energy Institute

The Appalachian region has long provided natural resources that have powered the nation’s prosperity. The region now is experiencing hardships related to the changes in how society generates and uses electricity. The electrification of transportation provides real opportunities for addressing those hardships. Rural Reimagined will demonstrate those opportunities across Appalachia in five states, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.

The project aims to provide clean and affordable mobility options to underserved communities by developing needed charging infrastructure and adopting and demonstrating various cost-effective EVs in diverse applications like public transit with the goal of building an EV ecosystem for Appalachia and transforming the lives of rural and low-income communities through strong regional collaboration.

The project team includes dozens of partners spanning U.S. Department of Energy Clean Cities coalitions, EV charging suppliers and service providers, EV manufacturers, rural transit agencies, academic institutions, and other stakeholders in the public and private sectors.
NAFTC’s Role:
The National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium (NAFTC) at the West Virginia University Energy Institute will develop and disseminate a safety-focused EV training program to develop the auto and diesel technician workforce in Appalachia that will be required to support the adoption of EVs. NAFTC will implement its proven train-the-trainer approach to disseminate the training.

Four NAFTC member community and technical colleges with ties to Appalachia will develop the educational materials. NAFTC’s existing EV materials will form the basis for the curriculum development. Materials will include textbooks, workbooks, PowerPoint slides, tests, and aids such as videos. The curriculum will be designed to allow its use in traditional college programs as well as for workshops for in-service technicians. The training will be rolled out to community and technical colleges throughout the region.

Tennessee Tech is leading the overall effort. Learn more. https://sites.tntech.edu/pchen/research/research-areas/rural-reimagined-building-an-ev-ecosystem-and-green-economy-for-transforming-lives-in-economically-distressed-appalachia/
Rural Reimagined Ribbon Cutting at Fairmont Marion County Transit Authority:
Celebrating a first of its kind in West Virginia, on November 22, 2022, the Fairmont-Marion County Transit Authority held a ribbon cutting featuring FMCTA’s newest fleet vehicle, a brand-new Ford E-Transit electric bus. FMCTA will be gathering data during its field demonstration of EVs as part of the Rural Reimagined project. FMCTA’s fleet also includes a Ford Mustang Mach-E. Funds to purchase the EVs were provided by the U.S. Department of Energy-funded Rural Reimagined project with matching funds from FMCTA.

NAFTC Director Trina Wafle’s video kick-off the event: Let’s Celebrate By: NAFTC

First WV Public Transit Electric Van by: Trevelyn Hall

IT’S TIME TO ADAPT! By: The Fairmont Times West Virginian

National AFV Day Odyssey
2022-10-07 | WV
Pittsburgh Clean Cities celebrated 20 years of National AFV Day Odyssey on Oct. 7, with Odyssey visionaries, Meg Baughman and Trina Wafle of NAFTC, at Allegheny Community College, a long-time NAFTC member. Congrats to Rick Price and Bob Koch! Learn more https://cleancities.energy.gov

CHARGING WEST VIRGINIA’S ENERGY FUTURE
2022-09-12 11:00 - 13:00 | Capital Building Complex – Charleston, WV, 1900 Kanawha Blvd E,, Charleston, WV, 25305, United States
NAFTC Interim Director Trina Wafle discussed workforce opportunities that will arise from the electrification of transportation: among them automotive technicians trained to support EVs and electricians to install recharging facilities. The event included several EV models, including a Hummer, Ford F-150 Lightning and Mustang MachE, Audi eTron GT, Tesla Model S, and others. Event collaborators included the West Virginia Auto Dealers Association, the Environmental Defense Fund, the West Virginia Oil Marketers & Grocers Assoc., the WV Electric Auto Association, WV Office of Energy, Chambers for Innovation & Clean Energy, and the NAFTC at WVU.
Hear her interview with West Virginia Metro News personality, Hoppy Kercheval, on Talkline: https://twitter.com/WVMetroNews/status/1569336673221099525?s=20&t=GnEkgY58wwPdZtMXJUL4Ew

Trina Wafle presenting at the WV Capitol Complex Building

Vehicles on Display

LIVE DISCUSSION – ELECTRIC AND HYBRID VEHICLES: SAFETY CONCERNS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR EMERGENCY RESPONDERS
2022-08-11 12:00 - 13:00 | Online Discussion
Hybrid vehicles are already commonplace, while electric vehicles are becoming more and more common. Make sure you and your department members are prepared. Mitch Petterson of General Motors, NVFC West Virginia director Tom Miller, and Joseph Tebo of the Federal Highway Administration for a live discussion on electric and hybrid vehicle safety for emergency responders. This discussion will be broadcast on the NVFC’s Facebook page and on Zoom.
