Carbon Motors : Blog

First Tour Stop Outside the USA!

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 07:13:00 -0500

One of the reasons we started Carbon Motors was to help the almost one million Americans who risk their lives every day to protect you, your families and ours. It is a tough job and people in the law enforcement community need to be commended for all that they do. It is our pleasure to get to meet all these people at our Pure Justice Tour stops and conferences – we’ve surely met over 50,000 officers by now. One of the best things that happens at a tour stop is when officers say ‘you thought of everything’! Very fulfilling and invigorating experience for us.

We have always had a huge vision of building a world class portfolio of purpose-built products. Law enforcement in other countries started to take notice and we now have a list of over 35 countries around the world that have expressed interest in our product. (Yes, that is thirty-five as in: one fifth of the world’s countries!). This interest is the reason for our next Pure Justice Tour stop, and the first one outside of the USA.

We have attended several International Association of Chiefs of Police, National Sheriff Association, Government and Security conferences by now and we have made 73 tour stops in 25 states all across the United States so far, and this first international trip will be to the Intersec conference being held in the United Arab Emirates. It is a gathering of over 19,000 law enforcement and government officials from over 100 countries and yes friends, we will be there taking orders for the TX7, our brand new Multi Mission Vehicle!

We are very excited about this trip. If your travels happen to take you through the Middle East, come visit us. We will be at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre from January 15th to the 17th. Stop by and say hello, or if you can’t make the trip we will be posting photos to our Facebook page to keep you up to date on all the developments. Also, see above for the official invitation (click on the image to zoom in).

Thanks for always supporting the Carbon Motors mission…..we are going global!

Do you want to read more about Carbon Motors? Here is an article that was posted recently at the Gizmag.com website

Operation TX7: Carbon Motors

Sat, 15 Dec 2012 11:39:00 -0500

Director: What’s this stuff going on about Carbon Motors?

Special Agent: Not sure. Rumor mill is churning out all sorts of stuff but can’t pin anyone down.

Director: Something is going down on the 17th of December. What do you know?

Special Agent: This is like finding out about sasquatch – people have claimed sightings of some new vehicle but I haven’t seen it. And not much on their website.

Director: I got a tip from Washington DC that there is something now called a “Carbon TX7” but that is all I could find out.

Special Agent: So, not the E7? What the heck is a TX7?

Director: Don’t know but someone said it was the size of Texas.

Special Agent: Well, let’s see. Maybe they will beat Santa to the punch line.

Do you think you know what the TX7 is? let us know in the comments below!

Reconnaissance: Carbon Motors

Wed, 12 Dec 2012 13:00:00 -0500

Sheriff: I got a survey request from Carbon Motors regarding all sorts of law enforcement vehicles. What’s going on?

Deputy: Not sure. They are always keeping up on the latest technology and I remember the CEO saying in some news article that they were working on other vehicles, not just the Carbon E7 purpose-built vehicle.

Sheriff: Yeah, I remember that…something about looking at the global law enforcement market and maybe had 4 or 5 other vehicles they were considering for their long-term plan. I remember asking them about an SUV and all I got was, “one thing at a time” kind of response. What cracked me up was they nicknamed some cop in Detroit with a middle name of “AWD” because he kept asking them about all-wheel-drive all the time.

Deputy: So, what was the survey about?

Sheriff: All sorts of stuff. They wanted to know about mobile command centers, prisoner transport vehicles, surveillance capabilities and law enforcement personnel carriers plus SWAT vehicles. I am sure they have something up their sleeves, I can smell it!

Deputy: Yeah, we spend a fortune on all that special purpose stuff. When we need it – it is certainly important. But these days spending $350,000 to $2,000,000 on some of that equipment just doesn’t make a lot of sense – not only with the budget cuts in town but the federal budget is sure to get an axe and we can’t rely on free flowing grants to cover this stuff.

Sheriff: Agree. We need a better solution but not sure what that might be. We probably use some of those vehicles only a few times a year – but when all hell breaks loose is when we have to have them.

Deputy: Well, the way the E7 was developed they got 3,500 cops to help out with the design and with our input they came up with something pretty kick ass. I know we have been pushing those guys at Carbon to get some product out on the streets as soon as possible. I wonder if….

Sheriff: I wonder if…..what? If those guys are crazy enough to reshuffle their plans around? Doubt it, or maybe they are… they announced before that they are looking for a significant amount of money to get the E7 out the door.

Deputy: But, what if there is a better way to get going and they just have been head down working on that – and didn’t tell anyone.

Sheriff: Don’t know but you better find out!

In For Questioning: Carbon Motors

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 12:14:00 -0500

Chief: Sergeant! Where the $#$#!$# are my Carbon E7 vehicles we were promised?

Sergeant: Ummmm…..haven’t heard a peep out of them for months since the dark days of March 2012 when the Feds failed to do their job.

Chief: What are you talking about? I saw them at the IACP convention in San Diego a couple of months ago. They were all smiles like they had something up their collective sleeves.

Sergeant: Well, they announced they were going to try to get the project funded privately and were looking at other strategic alternatives……whatever that means. They won’t work on this vehicle all these years to then just stop. Lots of garbage online about them, people throwing rocks…but I’ve met those guys. I wouldn’t under estimate them no matter how tough things get.

Chief: I want my damn car. Those guys over in the military have a $600 billion budget and get all the latest technology and capabilities. We are out here trying to do our jobs in vehicles designed for a regular citizen. We have our own special needs!

Sergeant: Sir, I understand but unless we help out, that real deal purpose-built vehicle is not going to happen. The defense guys have that massive budget because the Feds have responsibility for military operations. The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice have no federal jurisdiction over the 19,000+ law enforcement agencies – which is why we are kinda on our own. We need the guys at Carbon Motors to succeed and I think the best way that we can help is by getting our reservations and orders in place.

Chief: OK, you keep an eye on them. I have sneaking suspicion those guys are plotting something which is why we haven’t heard anything on the streets lately.

Feel free to share your ideas in the comments section below!

What do you think we at Carbon Motors are up to?

The Relentless Fight

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 11:11:00 -0400

Dear Connersville, Fayette County, State of Indiana, friends, investors, advisors, partners, suppliers and to the nearly 1 million brave law enforcement first responders that put themselves on the line every day – I just wanted to take a short moment to say “THANK YOU!” for the overwhelming outpouring of support during this difficult period. Please know that it is genuinely appreciated and my team and I are working non-stop to get back on our feet, brush ourselves off and get back in the fight!

Our country was not built by those who stood on the sidelines, or by those who hid behind political convenience, or by those too scared to lead. Our country was built by relentless entrepreneurs that despite the odds, despite the severity of the challenge, despite the roadblocks and despite the naysayers, rose to the occasion, led where there was no leader, and through innovation turned the impossible into the possible – no matter how long it took.

We choose this path not because it is easy, but because it is hard, because it is just, because it is honorable and because we are Americans.

William Santana Li
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Carbon Motors Corporation

Three Simple Words

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:07:00 -0500

I was appalled when I found out that the vast majority of the over 500,000 cars used by law enforcement today were manufactured on foreign soil. At a time when we are experiencing record unemployment, our nation’s law enforcement heroes are providing a taxpayer funded public service in cars made across the border?! How can that possibly make any sense from a policy perspective? It is one reason U.S. Department of Labor senior officials visited us in Connersville recently as part of the Administration’s ongoing efforts to support the domestic automotive sector.

The Midwest is the heart of all U.S. manufacturing – over 11% of its earned personal income is derived from manufacturing, as opposed to a 7% share for the rest of the U.S. So when examining the devastating consequences of outsourcing manufacturing jobs, one need not look further than America’s Heartland. Though it is an incredibly complex issue, both sides of the aisle agree that creating and keeping manufacturing jobs in the U.S. is a critical factor if we are to remain competitive in the global market.

Carbon’s domestic manufacturing approach is a likely reason why we have received, and continue to garner, bi-partisan support in our efforts to manufacturing the world’s first and only purpose-built law enforcement patrol vehicle – the Carbon E7 – here in America.

It is also an important consideration for the over 500 law enforcement agencies that have reserved more than 20,000 E7’s to integrate into their fleets. The need for an advanced, mission specific homeland security technology platform for law enforcement is greater than ever, and so is the need for it to be built on U.S. soil by American workers. This is what is technically known in the highest ranks of Washington DC, Silicon Valley, Detroit, Wall Street, and Main Street as a “no-brainer”.

“We are on the cusp of big breakthroughs in vehicle technologies,” stated Secretary of Energy Steven Chu at the Detroit Economic Club. “The question is, ‘Which countries will make them?’ Asia and Europe are moving aggressively to seize technological leadership. So must we.” A recent White House Blog further acknowledges that while manufacturing production may have increased by 5.7 percent, “That’s a good thing, but we need to do more.” We at Carbon Motors emphatically agree. America’s business leaders must be willing to go out and fight tooth and nail, exhausting all energy in order to propel the United States to the forefront of global industrial production.

That is why we selected the great State of Indiana as our global headquarters. It is why our intent from day one was to employ Americans to assemble these vehicles to safely and efficiently serve our American communities. It is why my team and I have made extraordinary personal and professional sacrifices, working day and night to deliver this long overdue, breakthrough product to our first responders. It’s an undertaking of such remarkable magnitude that we have called on the federal government and the public and private sectors to work together to achieve this common goal – a goal which is in the national security and socioeconomic interests of the United States of America.

President Obama stated during his State of the Union address last week, “…we have a huge opportunity, at this moment, to bring manufacturing back [to America]. But we have to seize it. Tonight, my message to business leaders is simple: Ask yourselves what you can do to bring jobs back to your country, and your country will do everything we can to help you succeed.”

Carbon Motors has taken the responsible and necessary actions to follow an American plan to success. We know exactly what to do and where to do it, and have already begun refurbishing the 50-year old mothballed facility in which we will execute our plan. But this is only the first step.

As Secretary John Bryson, U.S. Department of Commerce, declared at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce last month, “we need to build it here and sell it everywhere.” The facts are simple – law enforcement is a government service provided around the world; and the Carbon E7 is the only purpose-built vehicle designed to meet the demanding needs of that mission. With over three-dozen countries already expressing interest in importing the E7, it is quite clear that there is a tremendous paradigm shifting opportunity to manufacture vehicles here in America to be exported for use on foreign soil.

The New York Times published a story entitled “American Cars Make Headway” in which the author described how cars manufactured in the U.S. could be found in countries from around the globe. It was the headline of the paper 100 years ago. We believe the Administration is on the right track and will do their part to ensure that ‘offshoring’ is a less attractive alternative to domestic manufacturing, but that is not enough. Let’s start with insourcing government expenditures (our taxpayer dollars) for law enforcement vehicle operations. Approve the Carbon Motors ATVM loan and together we will innovate our way to putting even more American technologies and vehicles on the world’s roads emblazoned with those three simple words: “Made in America.”

William Santana Li
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Carbon Motors Corporation

Where are the Jobs?

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:00:00 -0500

Jobs, jobs, jobs. It’s an issue that is on everyone’s mind these days, regardless of political affiliation. As of September 2011, the United States sits at the highest unemployment rate since the recession of the late 1970s and early 1980s – 9.1% now vs. 9.2% in 1981 – and almost 60% higher than that experienced during the prosperity of the early 1990s. What that adds up to, in an oversimplified nutshell, is that the nation must create over 265,000 jobs per month over the next 5 years in order to return us to pre-depression (or recession, or economic downturn, or insert phrase-of-the-day here) employment numbers. And according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 200,000 jobs were created last month. We still have lots of work to do folks!

More taxation, regulation, and litigation will not create more jobs, nor will sitting on our collective keisters waiting for them to fall from the sky. And unfortunately, there is no magic wand that can be waived to conjure up jobs out of thin air. The economic crisis did not happen overnight and it will not be solved overnight. We need common sense, pro-growth, collaborative policies to give the small businesses, entrepreneurs and industrialists renewed confidence in our economy and enlist Washington DC to help set the right environment as a catalyst for job creation.

I have no interest in engaging anyone in a political debate here, as this is neither a Republican nor a Democratic issue… it is an American issue. Both sides of the aisle agree that we are in dire need of new American jobs and we need them yesterday.

Twenty-nine months ago, Carbon Motors applied for a $310 million loan from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) under the provisions of Section 136 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. And for the critics – this is not a handout or bailout. Government funding of a new tank, a new jet fighter or a new submarine, for example, is not considered a handout. It is accepted as the role, and a basic function, of the government to protect its citizens. It is unconscionable that we as a country have a defense budget of over $600 BILLION to support our Troops, but we dare flinch at a $300 million LOAN that will be paid back to the federal government with interest to support our First Responders.

The DOE has concluded their due diligence, and we continue to work with the Administration through the final stages of the approval process. When approved, Carbon Motors will directly employ approximately 1,550 Americans and will indirectly put an estimated additional 8,500 Americans back to work.

Crime isn’t going away and the government has an inherent responsibility to protect its citizens. Law enforcement vehicles must be provided in order to accomplish that and our customer has spoken in an authoritative voice with over 20,000 reservations from all 50 US States for the Carbon E7. Where are the jobs you ask? The jobs are waiting here in Indiana! Approve the Carbon Motors DOE loan and help put over 10,000 eager Americans back to work!

Stacy Dean Stephens
Chief Brand Officer and Director of Marketing Communications
Carbon Motors Corporation

Manilla Folders

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:04:00 -0500

When Ronald Reagan was Governor of California, he conducted a survey to identify waste and inefficiencies in state spending as one of his first actions in office. Approximately 250 private sector leaders, with expertise spanning every line of activity in California, volunteered to examine the state’s habits and provide recommendations that would reduce any unnecessary cost for the state.

While a member of the Governor’s task force was observing state employees, he noticed that one worker was folding oversize state forms to fit into standard size manila folders and then subsequently placing them into standard size filing cabinets. It was obvious to the task force member that when they doubled the form over to get it to fit, the capacity of the file cabinet was cut in half. When asked why it was being done this way, the state employee answered, “Well, the state forms are printed in this size, and it’s bigger than the file… They’ve always been printed that way.” The task force member picked up the phone, called the state’s printer and ordered them to immediately change the size of the forms to fit the folder.

Reagan later claimed that this brilliant insight allowed California to purchase 4,200 fewer file cabinets each year. President Clinton made similarly critical remark during the National Performance Review initiative as his own brand of reinvention: “Our goal is to make the entire federal government both less expensive and more efficient, and to change the culture of our national bureaucracy away from complacency and entitlement toward initiative and empowerment.”

It has been proven time and time again that the efficiency of the entire country at the local, state and federal levels is significantly increased when our leaders in the public and private sectors come together and borrow from each other’s expertise and best practices. And one area in which that can almost immediately be accomplished is in law enforcement patrol vehicle operations.

Patrol vehicle operations are one of the highest expenses burdening taxpayers today for law enforcement services. To get a little more granular on how these costs quickly add up, agencies spend up to $3,500 for one lightbar to place on a retail car’s roof to make it an ‘emergency vehicle.’ The partition (you’ve seen them in taxis – the metal divider between the front and rear seat) can cost up to $750. We then pay for labor to have these and all of the other law enforcement technologies haphazardly retrofitted into the passenger compartment where officers are expected to work. Then, at the other end of the vehicle’s life, agencies have to again incur the labor costs associated with decommissioning and reselling their patrol cars – essentially, the original retrofit process in reverse. Wouldn’t our communities be better off using these funds to put (or retain, in the cases where budget cuts are cutting to the bone) more officers out on the streets?

I had occasion to meet with a procurement expert last week. When I asked him how much he thought his local police department should be spending on a lightbar based on his experience, he quickly answered, “$200-300 a piece.” I had to break out the smelling salts after I shared with him the price he actually pays as a taxpayer. The truth is it doesn’t need to be this way. Like replacing over-sized forms with more efficient standard sizes, it’s time our law enforcement community had a purpose-built patrol vehicle! Dramatic savings are available for each and every U.S. taxpayer nationwide.

By taking a clean sheet approach to law enforcement emergency vehicle operations, Carbon Motors will eliminate inefficiencies from a cradle to cradle full circle approach. It has partnered with the best automotive and law enforcement suppliers to create a fully integrated, purpose-built technology platform directly from the manufacturer that will be backed by a comprehensive 24/7/365 service plan, also purpose-built with help from our law enforcement customers.

The Carbon E7 will immediately result in fuel savings of up to 40%, it will reduce fleet maintenance costs, improve durability over the life of the vehicle, and will broaden the capabilities of the law enforcement mission (see Serious Mission. Serious Machine.) due to its purpose-built, turnkey nature. If the entire fleet were to be converted to Carbon E7 vehicles, we estimate that the country could save on the order of $10 – $20 billion taxpayer dollars over a period of ten years.

Just because “it has always been done this way” does not make it the most economical or responsible way to get the job done. Complacency kills and this is no time for apathy. It’s time for an initiative that will exercise common sense and conduct some cross-functional assessments of significant wasteful spending. Let’s stop filling retail cars with the over-sized aftermarket equipment, power supplies, attachment devices and excess wiring to fit the file cabinet of law enforcement patrol duties. The Carbon Motors ATVM loan needs to be approved so we can give our first responders the right size folder for their file cabinet!

Stacy Dean Stephens
Chief Brand Officer and Director of Marketing Communications
Carbon Motors Corporation

Complacency Kills

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:50:00 -0500

I vividly recall Sgt. Tony Veltre, one of my instructors at the police academy, shouting, “Complacency kills!” A mantra he would repeat throughout our instruction until it became indelibly imprinted into each of our brains. After graduation, I was fortunate enough to work for an agency that carried that same philosophy into practice on the street. As most of us in law enforcement have done, I made my fair share of stupid mistakes – a few of which were at the hand of complacency. Fortunately, there was always someone on the team with more experience to help teach me a valuable lesson. And now it’s my turn to give back to those whose safety is compromised by the complacency with which most people view “police cars.”

I think it’s fair to say that most officers think a great deal about their own personal safety whenever they’re investigating a crime, clearing a building or conducting a field interview. But what happens when they get in their patrol vehicle? Do they really pay that much attention to the equipment in their vehicle and how it might affect their own safety during normal operation, in an emergency response scenario, or worse, in the case of an accident? The answer is YES. Can the same be said for the average citizen when thinking of their local officers or deputies? Most likely not.

The citizens are essentially the employers of law enforcement officers and while most agencies offer some version of a ride-along program, most of our ‘bosses’ are unaware of such opportunities and have not had occasion to fully experience a day in the life of law enforcement. This lack of personal, on-the-job experience creates an unfortunate disconnect in the employer/employee relationship that has adversely affected the safety of the over 800,000 women and men sworn to uphold the law.

Allow me to elaborate. One thing that has always bothered me about law enforcement cars today, and what is most assuredly not recognized by the general public, is that I have yet to find anywhere in the world crash tests conducted on an actual patrol car – that is with the lights, sirens, computer, cameras, radar, radios, equipment console, rifle, shotgun, etc., already installed. And who would?

The structure and independence of the over 19,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide makes it impractical if not impossible for them to achieve levels of vehicle safety that are required of other cars on the road. These agencies generally “upfit” their own retail passenger vehicles according to their unique needs and specs. As these agencies have their own ideas about what works best for their department and use different methods and equipment to achieve them, there are thousands of possible configuration permutations for what may appear to the untrained civilian eye to be a standard “police car.” Agencies are already constrained by slimming budgets and loss of manpower, and can’t be expected to run the complex and expensive set of safety tests that would be required to ensure that a fully-upfitted patrol car is as safe as other comparable passenger cars on the road.

The retail fleet cars that police agencies purchase already meet all federally mandated safety standards before they leave the factory, but without any law enforcement technologies added. The manufacturer has no ongoing role in ensuring that post-factory additions, deletions and changes don’t alter the safety of the vehicle.

Each of the aftermarket equipment suppliers competes for real estate inside the many different makes and models of cars used in law enforcement today, and shares that market with multiple other suppliers of similar equipment. It is not financially pragmatic to assume they are able to invest the appropriate resources into a crash program for each make/model of retail car for which (in many cases) multiple variations of their products must be produced.

For those of us “in the know,” we already understand the dangers of operating an emergency vehicle and why an officer’s safety is being compromised by today’s pieced together solution. For the uninitiated, I’ll do my best to briefly paint a vivid picture.

It is critical that citizens be able to quickly recognize and identify law enforcement vehicles responding to an emergency. Unfortunately, emergency lights today do not always create a conspicuous silhouette of the emergency vehicle, making it less visible from certain angles and difficult for citizens to take appropriate action in response to that emergent situation.

A cruiser’s outward visibility is one of the most important features to the operator, yet our sightline is crowded with cameras, a flip-down video monitor, a radar antenna and/or radar display, a GPS device, a scratched up partition window, and so on, that have been attached using screws, glue, Velcro, bungee cords, or other creative methods. All of this emergency equipment operates in several different modes that require manual changes while driving, talking on the radio, and carefully monitoring everything else on the road.

A mobile data computer (MDC) is essentially a laptop and is commonly mounted to a swivel between the instrument panel and the front seat. It is an extension of the communications system with which we must constantly interface for vital, real-time data on law enforcement operations. And don’t forget, each of the electronic devices mentioned has its own unique power supply (how wasteful!) that must also be stored and secured.

The spot lamp, typically mounted on the A-pillar on the driver’s side, is manually adjusted by a metal handle that protrudes dangerously into what is known as the head-swing area of the cabin – the space into which your head is likely to travel during a sudden or violent stop. There is even an aftermarket supplier who promotes a product with the sole function of deactivating air bags, arguably one of the top three safety features of any vehicle, to prevent interference with the partition and/or mounted equipment.

So a few questions to ponder – Is each and every patrol car ergonomically configured to provide the most and efficient flow of data from the source to the officer in command of the vehicle so that he/she may concentrate on driving? Does the addition of the equipment create obstacles to exiting the vehicle when under fire? What happens when there is an officer-involved traffic accident? What if the airbags do deploy? Will all of this equipment remain secure? Will any one of these items be jarred loose and become a projectile looking for a place to rest (like someone’s head)?

Unfortunately, there are now over 500,000 law enforcement cars running around our country that have not been tested or confirmed safe after having been significantly altered. It’s the unfortunate downside of a fragmented market, where none of the parties mentioned above have the time, money, vested interest or resources to get the job done. It’s time for someone to be accountable. Enter Carbon Motors.

The Carbon E7 is the first and only fully integrated patrol vehicle designed to protect those who protect us all! (See Purpose-Built blog here.) Since we embarked upon this mission, every integration-related discussion has in some way included officer safety, and our intent has always been to meet or exceed Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), inclusive of all of the law enforcement equipment options.

Complacency kills! We can’t continue to run around with our heads in the sand, hoping that nothing goes wrong. If we employ our law enforcement first responders with the expectation that they will protect and serve the community, then we should provide them with no less than the appropriate equipment specifically and purposely designed to protect and assist them in accomplishing this life-threatening mission. In the interest of officer safety, let us all do our part to make Sgt. Veltre proud and properly equip each and every law enforcement first responder with a Carbon E7.

Stacy Dean Stephens
Chief Brand Officer and Director of Marketing Communications
Carbon Motors Corporation

Serious Mission. Serious Machine

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 17:00:00 -0500

I am frequently asked, “What exactly do you mean by ‘purpose-built’?” It’s certainly a fair question, and for me, the answer brings to mind memories of the school workbooks from years ago – you know, the ones where you would be given an image of a task on one side of the page and you would have to draw a line across the page to the best tool for the task… Here is an illustration of what we may have missed that day in class:

Of course this scenario never happened, but it does make a serious point. Virtually any specialized task is best addressed with tools and equipment specifically designed for the mission at hand. Sure, you can use a pair of pliers to drive a nail into a board, but why would you? Someone else elected to design a hammer, which is uniquely capable of, and far better suited to, performing that task.

Purpose-built quite simply means, “exclusively built for a particular purpose” – a mission specific product built from the ground-up, dedicated and committed to one set of professional users. Our country builds purpose-built vehicles to put out fires, go into battle, clean our streets, collect our trash and deliver our mail. Why not a purpose-built vehicle, then, for patrolling our roadways, protecting our communities, and securing our homeland?

The auto review Web site “Good Car Bad Car” summarized the situation well:

“You don’t see camouflaged Cessna Citation CJ3s landing on the USS George Washington. No, Lockheed Martin designs a purpose-built F22 Raptor for United States Air Force. Same goes for tanks (not Chevrolet Suburban-based) and submarines (not reconfigured Baja 35 Outlaws). Perhaps it’s time police forces began to think the same way.”

Carbon Motors was founded to do exactly that on behalf of the law enforcement community and is now focused on securing our country with a truly purpose-built homeland security platform – code named the Carbon E7. The E7 will provide unparalleled safety, superior performance, and lower operating costs with one sole mission – to protect and serve those that protect and serve us.

So how does one define the parameters of a purpose-built vehicle for law enforcement? We started by establishing what we call the Carbon Council, a users group of over 3,500 law enforcement professionals in all 50 states at the local, state, and federal level. We then worked with them to help define a list that now embodies over 100 key operating requirements a vehicle should have for the law enforcement mission.

We then compared that list against all existing product offerings to see if there was anything that could serve as a starting point. It became evident, however, that from both a technical and business standpoint, it was impossible to do this by modifying a retail passenger car. We decided the best approach was to develop an all-new, homeland security platform from the ground-up, “Designed by Law Enforcement, Exclusively for Law Enforcement.” By doing so, here is a small sample of what critical features we were able to include in the Carbon E7:

integrated emergency lights for more conspicuous, durable aerodynamic and fuel efficient vehicles;
a factory installed partition to separate and protect the officers from dangerous suspects placed into custody;
an appropriate powertrain that provides performance without sacrificing a much needed improvement in fuel economy;
a fully integrated technology interface suitable for mobile emergency operations;
coach (or rear-hinged) doors with a wider opening and larger aperture to make inserting and removing those in custody safer for all concerned; and
integrated sensors capable of detecting weapons of mass destruction such as radiation, chemical or biological threats.

We are no longer in elementary school and this is not a class exercise. Our first responders have a serious mission that requires a serious Machine – one that will answer the call on the test track as well as the annual budget review. One that will consume less at the fuel pump and will be seen less in the service shop. One that does not require an expensive decommissioning and disposal process. And a Machine assembled on U.S. soil.

A serious Machine will aid in officer recruiting and retention by properly equipping officers to carry out their mission. It will have state-of-the-art technology readily available to protect a high value target, to secure the scene of a natural disaster, or to effectively protect citizens during a terrorist attack on our homeland.

Our law enforcement officers deserve and require world-class equipment, just as our troops overseas do, to keep America safe from every possible threat, including domestic terrorism. The Carbon E7 is the only serious Machine for a serious law enforcement mission.

Stacy Dean Stephens
Co-Founder and Director Communications
Carbon Motors Corporation

11 MPG?! – Revisited

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 07:00:00 -0500

“When I put my foot into it I want it to go… I don’t care if it gets 1mpg.” This is an actual quote from an active duty officer regarding his patrol car. This sentiment is certainly understandable, as life and death often depends on the performance of an officer’s vehicle in the tight situations that, unfortunately, they often find themselves in. We need to do a better job of satisfying our first responders’ need for speed while not ignoring our society’s need to more efficiently manage our public funds in an environmentally-responsible manner.

While agency personnel issues certainly aren’t at the front of mind for the officer actively punching the gas pedal in hot pursuit, our horsepower-minded officer would no doubt appreciate the fact that with reduced fuel expenditures comes increased agency funding available for things such as hiring or retaining more officers to back him/her up! Indeed, fuel is one of the most significant cost items facing law enforcement patrol operations. Carbon Motors estimates that on average, law enforcement fuel costs could be reduced by up to 40% through the use of its fuel-efficient clean diesel turbo alternative.

We also estimate that the nation’s law enforcement fleet consumes approximately 1.5 billion gallons of gasoline and emits over 14 million tons of CO2 annually. These are numbers that would immediately begin to be reduced by up to 40% with the adoption of the Carbon E7. These and other related factors make the Carbon E7 a compelling candidate for loan funding under the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) loan program, the mandate for which includes prioritizing potential contributions to improved fuel economy of the U.S. light-duty vehicle fleet. The Carbon E7 does exactly that!

As you might imagine, most officers don’t drive like civilians. The driving patterns sometimes look like “idle idle idle idle idle idle idle (do this for a couple of hours) then WIDE OPEN THROTTLE – 1 mile per gallon, here I come – then idle idle idle idle… well you get the picture! So we asked the Carbon Council to provide us with some real world data on their actual fuel economy experiences as part of our loan application through the DOE’s ATVM program (the Carbon Council is comprised of over 3,500 law enforcement professionals representing federal, state and local agencies in all 50 U.S. States). The results were shocking, and not in a good way.

Remember, this is the largest most visible government fleet in our country – over 500,000 retail passenger cars retrofitted to be police cars that secure our communities across the country. So what was the bottom line average fuel economy? 11 MILES PER GALLON – that is not a typo! This is an unacceptable statistic in light of the need to reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil and tighten fiscal belts from the Federal government to every state house and locality in our nation. The next step to resolve this is for the DOE to approve the Carbon Motors ATVM loan, and we will begin to dramatically improve the fuel efficiency of law enforcement vehicles – and reduce the cost of government for all taxpayers.

11 MILES PER GALLON. There has to be a better way. There is. It’s called the Carbon E7 and we are working tirelessly to provide our law enforcement professionals with the power they need when they need it, and will do so in a fuel-efficient offering.

Stacy Dean Stephens
Chief Brand Officer
Director Marketing Communications
Carbon Motors Corporation

A Merry Safe Christmas!

Sat, 24 Dec 2011 16:00:00 -0500

Warm Wishes to the Brave Women and Men of Law Enforcement This Holiday Season

On behalf of the entire team here at Carbon Motors, I wanted to express our sincere appreciation to all of our nation’s 840,000+ first responders who leave their loved ones behind every day to protect and serve.

While your sacrifices are made year-round, it is during the holiday season that your commitment is particularly heartwarming – you allow the rest of us to enjoy spending time with friends and family in the peace, safety and freedom provided under your watchful eyes.

Know that we, too, are working tirelessly during the holidays and beyond to do our part to create a safer environment for those of you who serve us in uniform… always mindful of your unique mission and the sacrifices you make to carry it out.

We look forward to reconnecting with those of you we’ve already come to know in our travels, and making many new first responder friends in the New Year as we resume the Pure Justice Tour.

We will continue working with the growing list of over 3,500 Carbon Council members as we approach the goal of delivering a Carbon E7 to each and every one of you.

Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year – and please be safe out there!

William Santana Li
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Carbon Motors Corporation

Patience and Determination - It's All in the Attitude

Mon, 19 Dec 2011 10:39:00 -0500

Referring to the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) loan eligibility requirements under the provisions of Section 136 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, a senior government official recently asked me how we could have such upbeat patience through this very lengthy and time consuming process. I thought you might be curious to read my reply:

“I have seen thousands of officers across the country and stood in front of 10,000 people in Connersville [Indiana] and promised them that we would put them back to work. A promise is a promise – and we will not rest until this is done.”

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, you’ll never find a more professional and determined team as the one we have assembled here at Carbon Motors. On this critical mission, it is our patience and determination that will lead us to success!

William Santana Li
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Carbon Motors Corporation

Determination Waits for No One

Wed, 31 Aug 2011 23:58:00 -0400

As mentioned in the previous blog, Leaving No Stone Unturned, there are over 50 suppliers already working on the Carbon E7 at this time and Carbon’s management team is scouring the United States for the best suppliers and technologies to add to that tremendous team. Having taken part in many of those meetings, I’ve noticed a striking similarity between our law enforcement customers and the people pitching to become a part of this true “world’s first” – EXCITEMENT!

The Carbon E7 successfully cracks the shell of even the most jaded of officers at Pure Justice Tour stops and industry trade shows across the country to reveal the younger, gung-ho cop that once was. It also brings out the kid in the most sophisticated scientists, engineers, inventors, executives and suppliers.

In our search to make the E7 the best homeland security technology platform law enforcement has ever seen, it seems that everyone we meet is genuinely excited to have the opportunity to work on such a unique project, scores of which were at the point of barely being able to contain themselves. I personally understand that feeling because it is one I have lived with since we began this journey many years ago. And it has driven the entire team to exploit every opportunity we have in order to accelerate the development program of the vehicle It is a passionate and emotional experience for us all!

Fueled by this excitement, an extremely successful week of supplier presentations in Connersville, Indiana, generated enough momentum to follow it up with another packed house at the invitation of U.S. Representative Fred Upton (R-MI). Rep. Upton, Chairman of the House Energy Committee and recently appointed member of the Super 12, heard of Carbon Motors from a friend and immediately began rallying Southwest Michigan suppliers. He invited Carbon Motors to participate in another supplier conference, which was held in Kalamazoo, Michigan specifically for us. This event helped build on the efforts already undertaken in Indiana, Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Wisconsin (and people wonder why are always on airplanes!).

Over 100 people representing more than 65 suppliers gathered to learn more about Carbon Motors and the remaining opportunities available to a thoughtful and motivated work force. We were also happy to see that due consideration was paid to law enforcement throughout the region as they, too, were invited to attend the event to see the E7 and meet the Carbon team. Rep. Upton commented that the E7 represented a bi-partisan effort to help create American jobs and promote U.S. energy independence in support of law enforcement – goals that he would lend his support to and stand behind 100%.

Determination waits for no one and we are honored to have all our suppliers and partners share the same level of resolve – together, as a team filled with the American spirit, we will deliver the E7!

Stacy Dean Stephens
Chief Brand Officer
Director Marketing Communications
Carbon Motors Corporation

Congressman Upton’s press release and photos from the event may be found here.

Supplier Development – Leaving No Stone Unturned

Fri, 12 Aug 2011 11:39:00 -0400

The team at Carbon Motors has been working relentlessly to ensure the E7 will be the best law enforcement patrol vehicle the world has ever seen. The goal is entirely achievable when partnering with a lineup of world-class suppliers from the technology, law enforcement, homeland security and automotive sectors – of which, we are honored to have over 50 partners and suppliers already working with us now.

As Carbon’s Chief Production Officer, I have the responsibility of working with each functional area of the Company to help identify the absolute ‘best of the best’ sources capable of meeting the unique needs of Carbon Motors and the law enforcement community – while keeping it affordable for our customers. This task requires a carefully choreographed series of meetings and evaluations with suppliers from all around the United States.

We have, therefore, conducted several supplier conferences over the past several months as we work towards putting the E7 vehicle into full-scale production. Most recently, Carbon Motors held a successful supplier conference at our headquarters in Connersville, Indiana where dozens of suppliers presented their products, services and technical capabilities directly to the management team for the entirety of the week.

It is our goal to source as much of this vehicle as possible from American factories. We have been working our way through California, Arizona, Georgia, South Carolina, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and, of course, Indiana. We have plenty more ground to cover as we seek the exact right technology for the E7. We will leave no stone unturned to ensure that our law enforcement first responders receive the safest and most efficient technology platform that they so rightfully deserve!

Alan J Bratt
Executive Vice President
Chief Production Officer
Carbon Motors Corporation

Lead by Example

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 17:20:00 -0400

Recently, President Obama announced an agreement that calls for the largest reduction in automotive fuel consumption since the 1970s. The plan, which isn’t scheduled to take effect until 2017, is the result of months of negotiations between the Obama administration and thirteen global automakers. This regulation would require that starting in 2017 companies improve their fleet fuel economy by 5% every year (3% for trucks) to reach an average fleet fuel efficiency of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.

But what about the government’s largest, most visible fleet of nearly a half a million law enforcement vehicles patrolling our communities? Today, law enforcement agencies operate vehicles that average 12 miles per gallon, burning through an estimated 1.5 billion gallons of fuel and emitting over 14 million tons of CO2 each year.

It is important to push for innovation and encourage the reduction of our dependence on foreign oil. But, our own government must lead by example.

A reasonable and prudent near-term opportunity that will allow the Administration to show a tangible move (not just a policy plan) to improved fuel economy and CO2 emission reduction is to support the development of Carbon’s E7 law enforcement patrol vehicle.

This breakthrough vehicle utilizes a high tech, advanced clean diesel powertrain. As discussed in a previous blog, clean diesels make up approximately 60% of vehicles operating in Europe. The benefits of these newer advanced diesels include up to 40% improvement in fuel economy, high torque for a fun to drive vehicle and a significant reduction in CO2 emissions.

At such a difficult time in our economy, the Carbon E7 stands at the cross roads, ready to help in the transition to a more independent and fuel-efficient nation!

Carbon Motors Announces 60th Stop on Pure Justice Tour

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 10:58:00 -0400

Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota

The 2011 Pure Justice Tour continues next week in Minneapolis/St. Paul and you are cordially invited to join us as 3M hosts Carbon Motors and the world’s first and only purpose-built law enforcement patrol vehicle, the Carbon E7, at the 3M Customer Innovation Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.

All law enforcement professionals are invited to drop by to chat with members of the Carbon team and to see, first hand, the only vehicle in the world designed with both agency budgets and crime fighting performance in mind. Carbon Motors is honored to be hosted by 3M, and strongly encourages all members of law enforcement to take advantage of the opportunity to stop by and see the Carbon E7.

A recognized leader in research and development, 3M produces thousands of innovative products for dozens of diverse markets. 3M’s core strength is applying its more than 40 distinct technology platforms – often in combination – to a wide array of customer needs. More information may be found at their Web site at http://www.3m.com/autosolutions.

Thursday, 28 July 2011

Event:

3M Hosts Pure Justice Tour

Times:

9:00am – 11:00am, Carbon E7 available for viewing

2:00pm – 4:00pm, Carbon E7 available for viewing

Location:

3M Innovation Center

Building 278, 3M Center

2350 Minnehaha Ave East

St. Paul, MN 55144

Entrance is east of McKnight on Minnehaha

Building 278 is located in the NW corner of the property

Attendance is open to all law enforcement professionals

The E7’s Social Media Ride

Sun, 13 Mar 2011 22:48:00 -0400

Whether or not you’re a fan of social media sites, one must admit the genius behind them in today’s society… especially for businesses. A quick, one-sentence update, a photo, a 30-second video or a spirited back-and-forth exchange of ideas can all immediately and simultaneously inform thousands of people of any number of activities.

For years now, we have utilized several variations of social media – Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, BluTube, Flickr and our very own Carbon Council and iPhone app – to reach those interested in following, and participating in, the progress of a breakthrough homeland security technology platform, the Carbon E7.

Our customers have taken advantage of this fact with over 3,500 law enforcement professionals in every functional discipline of law enforcement and in all 50 US States having signed up to participate in focus groups and product evaluations. They have been able to see the fruits of their labor through constant online updates, and then subsequently seek out and attend the Pure Justice Tour stops across the country for an opportunity to see it in person.

Our Facebook friends in Connersville, IN – Carbon’s home and future police car capital of the world – have been informed of Tour stop activities, major announcements and future plans, and have been free to ask questions (usually answered in very short order!) and provide Carbon team members with a boost of encouragement from time to time (with much THANKS!).

One of Carbon’s YouTube videos has over a quarter of a million hits, there are almost 9,000 ‘Carbon Fans’ on Facebook, and there are over 15,000 subscriptions to the Company’s electronic newsletter, The Carbon Chronicle. We encourage everyone to take a few minutes and look at Carbon’s social media portal here, sign up for The Carbon Chronicle, become a ‘fan’ on Facebook (or ‘like’ us, as it is now called), and download our iPhone app today.

With everything happening so fast these days, you certainly don’t want to find that you’ve missed the ride!

Getting it Right on the Pure Justice Tour

Sun, 14 Nov 2010 22:55:00 -0500

It happens every time. Even before the tailgate starts to come down on the big orange truck a crowd starts to form. Truck driver Ray finishes taking the tie down straps off the suspension arms, puts the wheel chocks in place and, in that unmistakable New York accent, says “Okay, back it up. Keep the wheels straight. Watch me” as he guides the E7 onto the tailgate. Ray starts to lower the tailgate to the ground and the small crowd of uniformed officers move in for a closer look.

“I’ve been following you guys online for a while, its great to finally see it in person!” someone says. Now the BMW diesel engine is purring as we drive it over to the display area. Then, the questions start: “What’s that for?” “That’s the sniffer for the weapons of mass destruction sensors.” And “What are those cameras for?” They’re for the automatic license plate reader system, it can read 1500 license plates per minute.”

This scene has been more or less repeated at each of the 57 Pure Justice Tour (PJT) stops that we’ve taken the E7 Concept Demonstration Vehicle (CDV) to, so far. While demonstrating all the features of the E7 CDV, one comment frequently heard is “You guys have thought of everything!” Truth be told, the reason the E7 is such an exciting new tool for the law enforcement community is because we’re good listeners. We’ve talked to thousands of law enforcement professionals, gone on ride-alongs, observed how they use their vehicles and listened to their complaints, criticisms and suggestions. We’ve talked to the administrators that order the vehicles and the technicians that service and repair them. It’s from all these interactions that the Carbon E7 CDV was born.

As the Product Planning Director of the E7, its my job to translate the wants and needs of the customers into engineering specifications that will guide the product and manufacturing engineers in the design of a technologically advanced, yet affordable patrol-ready vehicle. Top speed, fuel economy, front seat legroom, location of the door release handle; no detail is too big or too small to not be included in the product’s specification.

It was during a focus group discussion with members of the Chicago Police Department that we learned that we need to put drainage plugs in the front floor because when they get in and out of their cars all day long in the winter, the snow that gets carried in on their boots melts and creates a mini-Lake Michigan in the footwells. Observing officers in Houston cranking up the A/C in an effort to get cool while they sat sweltering in their uniform and body armor led us to specify heated and cooled seats with an ‘air scarf’ blower strategically positioned in the headrest to blow cooling air at the occupant’s neck.

And we’re still listening. At each PJT stop, we are privileged to continue the dialog with our prospective customers. ‘Have you thought of this’; or, ‘Why don’t you make it so we can do that’ are often heard. The design of the production version of the E7 has begun in earnest and we have identified some significant product improvements as a result of these thoughtful suggestions.

A lot goes into designing, engineering and manufacturing an all-new vehicle, especially one that is a ‘first of its kind’. More than most people know. Prototypes have to be hand built and tested to ensure the design does everything its intended to do, is durable and reliable, and meets all safety and emissions regulations. Then the tools that make the parts that make the production machines have to be designed and built. The first pre-production vehicles that roll out of the Carbon Campus assembly hall will then have to be validated and certified first before they can be sent out on patrol.

There’s a lot riding on this and we have to get it right. Thanks to all the women and men out there in the law enforcement community who have been kind enough to come out to our PJT stops, talk to us, share their experiences with us and offer their suggestions, I have no doubt that we will get it right and that we will live up to your expectations!

William F McAtamey
Director Product Planning
Carbon Motors Corporation

Writing the Book “Relentless”

Sun, 17 Oct 2010 12:22:00 -0400

With all the gloom, doom, anger, rumors and frustration these days, it is usually less than 10 seconds after saying “hello” that someone will look up quietly at me, in an almost depressed manner, and ask the question (as if awaiting bad news), “So How’s It Going?”

Without breaching confidentiality requirements (otherwise known as “spilling the beans” in legal-ese), all I can do is smile and say, ‘extraordinarily well!’ Demand for the Carbon E7 is overwhelming, we have a solid team and partners in place, the quality of new pending recruits is exceptional, we’ve begun refurbishing what will be the Carbon Campus in Connersville, and the federal direct loan process and related items are coming along nicely.

It is true – we are actually getting the local, state, and federal governments to work together; Independents, Democrats, and Republicans to work together; Main Street and Wall Street and the private sector to work together – all in a drive to show what Americans can do, together.

I think it would be safe to say that I am not the most patient person in the world. And there is no one driving harder to accelerate the timetable – for so many reasons. But the almost 8 years of working day and night has taught us that sometimes the greatest accomplishments and innovations in the world take time. But just because it takes time does not in any way, shape, or form diminish our unwavering commitment to provide our first responders with the appropriate equipment to secure our homeland and help put Americans back to work.

One more thing you should know… the work we do at Carbon Motors is extraordinarily complex in ways that you may never imagine. I have toyed for a while about writing a book about the good, bad, and the ugly of what it takes to build a new industrial powerhouse in our country – and I have finally decided that I will do it knowing that it will take a bit of time. One day, you and your kids will all have the detailed behind-the-scenes look at what it took, the extent of our commitment, the drama, the villains, and the heroes of our time – every action or inaction captured. You’ll know who stood on the right side of history and those who chose a different path. The working title for the book is, “Relentless”.

We look forward to showing you that the impossible is possible – and despite what the few naysayers will do or say (a few of which we are confident will end up in the back seat of the Carbon E7 one day), and that the true American spirit in all of us is alive and well!

Our country’s first responders get up every morning and are willing to put their lives on the line for us – the least we can do is stare every adversity, every evil, and every fear in the eye – and charge forward with an unwavering determination to achieve our mission. Are you relentless?

William Santana Li
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Carbon Motors Corporation
One Carbon Motors Drive
Connersville, IN 47331 USA