LOUISVILLE. A relatively new company on the scene is promising big fuel savings for relatively low cost – if truckers and fleets just give them a try.

NG1 Technologies is at the Mid-America Trucking Showthis week touting its TechFlo product. According to Dustin Nord, chief technology officer and developer of the product, trucks using his system can see fuel savings of 12-14%. And before you dismiss that as fool’s gold, Nord said he has documented data to prove the results.

TechFlo has been tested on all fuel types and engines from all major manufacturers, including Volvo, Cummins, Caterpillar, Detroit Diesel, Mercedes, International, Ford, Dodge, Mack and Isuzu and on a range of trucks, from pickups to Volvo, Peterbilt and other heavy-duty models.

“Ninety percent of fuel saving technologies average 3-5% savings,” Nord said. “We did two years of hard beta testing; 15 million miles of on-road testing; and we’ve seen averages of 13-16% with some going as high as 20% plus.”

Nord said he and co-designer Tom Shirra, who has since passed away, originally conceived the exhaust product for pickups but quickly saw the benefits to all types of vehicles. He added that it has been installed on vehicles as small as ATVs and as large as tugboats.

“We are not a fuel-based product, we are a flow-based product,” he said. The results are unmistakable.

“What makes an engine efficient is the amount of air,” Nord explained. “If you can bring in more air, the engine is more efficient.”

The result, he said, is fuel savings of $150-200 per week based on fuel prices of $2.25 a gallon.

The product works by moving gases and fluids through an exhaust pipe at a faster rate. Using a series of internally finned sections of pipes separated by a specified distance tailored to the application, the gases move through a high-speed bore that is formed in the center of the pipe.

As Nord explained, it is similar to the vortex that is created when you take a 2 liter bottle of soda – half filled – and spin it. The soda tends to flow towards the outside creating a vortex in the middle. In the case of the TechFlo, that center bore creates a natural vacuum that allows the engine and turbocharger to breathe, pulling gases and heat from the engine by relieving back pressure.

The results are increased fuel efficiency, increased horsepower and torque, and less noise equal to about 8-10 decibels.

Installation takes about 1 ½ hours, Nord said. The TechFlo costs about $3,000 (only one is needed per truck), but the company offers financing and even has a leasing program available. Nord said that under the lease program, which costs about $120 per month for a three-year lease, the real cost to fleets is nothing since the lease payments could be a tax writeoff at the end of the year.