Mack Trucks’ Mack Academy opened a new facility in Tinley Park, Illinois, to support battery-electric vehicle (BEV) training, particularly for the Mack LR Electric Class 8 refuse model.
The Mack Academy signed a seven-year lease, with an option to renew, for the 14,865 sq.-ft. facility located in a manufacturing park outside of Chicago.
“The Tinley Park Mack Academy is in a central location so that dealers and customers needing training can easily travel to the facility,” said Scott Behe, Mack Academy senior manager of operations. “It is in close proximity to both O’Hare and Midway airports, and the facility is about 5,500 sq.-ft. bigger than our previous location [in Joliet, Illinois], so it fulfills our need for more space for BEV-specific training.”
See also: Volvo Trucks opens electric truck training facility
BEV coursework at Tinley Park is focused on BEV safety training, operation, repair, and sales. Other courses include diesel training such as engine overhaul, transmission design and function and parts sales and warranty fundamentals.
The Tinley Park facility has two full-time trainers and offers technical training sessions up to four times a day. The site also features meeting spaces so classes are not disrupted by technician training.
The next-generation LR Electric, now available for order, features 42% more energy and a standard 376 kWh total battery capacity, offering an increased range compared with the first-generation LR Electric. Featuring twin electric motors, the Mack LR Electric offers 448 continuous horsepower and 4,051 lb.-ft. of peak output torque from zero RPM. The LR Electric has a two-speed Mack Powershift transmission, Mack mRIDE suspension, and Mack’s proprietary S462R 46,000-lb. rear axles.
See also: Eco-Cycle begins EV fleet with Mack LR Electric
The Mack Trucks Academy has six training locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. Mack also operates training facilities in Allentown, Pennsylvania; Atlanta; Grand Prairie, Texas; and Toronto, Canada.
