Hat-trick for JCB as hydrogen engine wins top award

JCB’s super-efficient hydrogen engine has won one of the oldest and most prestigious awards in British automotive engineering honouring technical achievement.

At a ceremony in London, JCB Chairman Lord Bamford was presented with the Royal Automobile Club’s Dewar Trophy for the company’s development of a hydrogen fuel motor. It is the third time that JCB’s innovations have been honoured with the Dewar Trophy.

John Wood MBE, Chairman of the Dewar Technical Committee, said: “JCB has been a pioneer in terms of powertrain development since it started building its own engines in 2004. That ethos has continued with its latest hydrogen-fuelled engines, which are an inspiring combination of current expertise and next-generation technology.”

Anthony Bamford said: “We’re extremely proud that the Royal Automobile Club has chosen to present JCB with the Dewar Trophy for the third time.  Our new hydrogen-fuelled engines can be put into production relatively quickly and it’s an important and pioneering step towards a zero-carbon future, and testament to the amazing abilities of our British engineers.”

JCB’s purpose-engineered zero CO_² hydrogen fuel motor was designed after a challenge to the company’s engineers from Anthony Bamford. The newly designed motor harnesses JCB’s existing expertise and supply chain infrastructure. The company is investing £100 million in the project and has two prototype hydrogen fuelled machines on test: a backhoe loader and a Loadall telescopic handler.