PITTSBURGH … Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton Corporation announced today that it has chosen its Wilsonville, Oregon, satellite power center as a lead facility to modify and integrate its Electric Vehicle (EV) DC quick charger for the North American market.  With this commitment, Oregon continues to establish itself as a leader in the emerging electric vehicle market, and Eaton further underscores its commitment to the Pacific Northwest region and the California market. 

Supporting Eaton in this important initiative are the Oregon Department of Transportation, the City of Wilsonville, Portland General Electric and Business Oregon, the state’s business development agency.

"The announcement today from Eaton represents the economic opportunities that can come from making the transition to electric vehicles," said Oregon Governor, Ted Kulongoski. "This is just the beginning of new, private investments because of our commitment to moving the entire Pacific Northwest away from fossil fuel vehicles and leading the nation to a cleaner, greener and more economical transportation system."

The charging stations, which will be launched later this year, are part of Eaton's range of products and services that will provide critical infrastructure for the EV corridors and across North America. Eaton’s quick charger can recharge an electric vehicle to 80 percent of battery capacity in 15 – 30 minutes. This type of recharge capability addresses the range anxiety anticipated by EV drivers and is expected to significantly aid vehicle adoption, utility and utilization.

“The City of Wilsonville is most pleased that Eaton is bringing to the Portland region the manufacturing of electric-vehicle quick-charging stations for the Western US market. Eaton’s decision demonstrates that the evolving ‘green economy’ can produce good, family-wage jobs for our residents,” said Wilsonville Mayor, Tim Knapp.

Eaton’s 80,000 square foot Wilsonville, Oregon facility currently employees 85 people. Eaton began its presence in the area in 1980 with its first service center, originally intended to support the wood products industry. Since then Eaton’s local operation has expanded to serve product lines across a wide variety of industry segments, primarily touching 13 western states with some projects reaching across the Americas.

“DC quick charging will be a critical part of the public infrastructure we need to create a cleaner transportation future with plug-in vehicles,” said Rich Stinson, president, Power Distribution Operations – Americas, Eaton’s Electrical Sector.  “Eaton is excited to help advance the aggressive early adoption of this clean transportation technology in I-5 Corridor and the Pacific Northwest. The region is helping to pave the way for broader adoption of electric vehicles throughout North America.”

Eaton is focused on creating innovative and affordable technologies that help customers reduce their impact on the environment. For more than 20 years, Eaton has developed electrical and hybrid power systems for trucks and buses and is now developing innovative solutions for hybrid power systems in commercial vehicles. Eaton is the only company to offer hybrid-electric and two hybrid-hydraulic system technologies, as well as the charging and networked charging management infrastructure for commercial and residential applications. Eaton offers a complete line of electric vehicle chargers for residential and industrial application and has a presence in communities across North America. For more information, visit www.eaton.com/plugin.

Eaton’s electrical business is a global leader in power distribution, power quality, control and industrial automation products and services. Eaton’s global electrical product lines, including Cutler-Hammer®, Moeller®, Powerware®, Holec®, MEM®, Santak®, and MGE Office Protection Systems™ provide customer-driven PowerChain Management® solutions to serve the power system needs of the data center, industrial, institutional, government, utility, commercial, residential, and OEM markets worldwide. For more information, visit www.eaton.com.

Eaton Corporation is a diversified power management company with 2009 sales of $11.9 billion. Eaton is a global technology leader in electrical components and systems for power quality, distribution and control; hydraulics components, systems and services for industrial and mobile equipment; aerospace fuel, hydraulics and pneumatic systems for commercial and military use; and truck and automotive drivetrain and powertrain systems for performance, fuel economy and safety. Eaton has approximately 70,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 150 countries.