Waltham Cross, UK: Reynolds, a food wholesaler, has five Mercedes-Benz Actros tractors with Hultsteins Ecogen 2 fridge power systems.
Reynolds has 21 refrigerated trailers in its 220-vehicle fleet, operating from its distribution centre in Waltham Cross that feeds eight depots.
As part of its efforts to improve sustainability – which include using vehicles – the firm expects to cut diesel fridge emissions, and diesel costs, with the Ecogen 2 systems.
“I was familiar with Hultsteins and I liked the other products, such as the Slimline hydraulic refrigeration system,” said Steve White, head of national fleet, Reynolds.
“When I was looking at bodybuilding spec for new vehicles, I spoke to them again and had a look at the Ecogen units.”
The Ecogen 2 system can be retrofitted to any tractor unit with an engine power take-off and converts existing diesel fridges to run on electricity. It generates 400 volts and connects to the fridge motor via a five-pin plug. It also means there is no requirement to replace existing trailers or fridges.
“We’ve got 17 frontline trunking HGVs, so we decided that, on renewal, we would fit the Ecogen system to five Mercedes-Benz Actros tractor units, which are on contract hire from NRG Riverside. Obviously, there was the removal of the red diesel subsidy on 1 April this year, so that was a big incentive for us from a fuel-saving perspective, but we also have a series of sustainability projects and a plan to reduce our overall carbon footprint, so I felt it was a good product to trial.”
The tractor units have entered service with Reynolds and White estimates that each Ecogen 2 unit will save at least £5,000 per year in diesel costs and more than 1,900kg of CO2 per annum.
“The gameplan is to convert the entire HGV fleet to Ecogen 2 units because, from an emissions point of view, it’s the way forward – and we can reduce our fuel bill.”
“If you look at the payback, it’ll take about two to three years to cover the cost of the units, and there are additional benefits, such as shouting about the fact that we’re a sustainable company adopting clean, technologically advanced equipment,” he says.
