Caterpillar received 2007 certification from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the company's C7 engine equipped with ACERT.

The C7 is designed for customers who operate medium-duty vocational and delivery trucks. It will be in full production by Jan. 1, 2007. The C7 is also widely used in a variety of other medium-duty applications, including school buses, emergency vehicles and recreational vehicles.

The Caterpillar ACERT Technology relies on four basic systems to lower emissions: air management, precision combustion, advanced electronics and effective aftertreatment. These four systems work to decrease particulate matter, oxides of nitrogen and hydrocarbon emissions while preserving the engine’s reliability and durability, which keep owning and operating costs low.

The Caterpillar C7 engine features an enhanced version of ACERT Technology that allows it to comply with the 2007 EPA regulations without sacrificing reliability, durability or fuel economy.

Caterpillar has sold more than 450,000 on-highway engines with ACERT Technology to more than 46,000 customers since the technology was introduced in 2003. Customer acceptance of Cat engines is reflected in the company’s unprecedented sixth J.D. Power and Associates Award, which Caterpillar received in 2006 for “Highest Customer Satisfaction With Vocational Heavy Duty Diesel Engines.” No other engine manufacturer has ever won this customer feedback award, which measures customer satisfaction through J.D. Power’s annual survey of vehicle owners who operate in typically rugged vocations and use vehicles such as dump trucks or garbage trucks.