HAI claims success for e-commerce project

HAI Robotics, a global leader in Autonomous Case-handling Robotic (ACR) system for warehouse logistics, is calling its first project in the UK with Chinese cross-border warehouse operator WINIT a success, as deliveries for holiday shopping parcels are about to reach customers.

The project provides 120,000 storage locations with shelving height of 4.3m in a 10,000 sq m warehouse in Tamworth, Staffordshire. By deploying 100 HAIPICK A42 robots and 16 On-conveyor Picking Workstations in the warehouse, goods-handling efficiency is improved between three- and four-fold compared with manual work, with a daily handling volume of up to 50,000 pieces.

The warehouse owner WINIT is a Shanghai-based provider of overall solutions for cross-border e-commerce, and runs overseas warehousing and distribution services in Australia, the US and several European countries. With the project going live, it saw its warehouse throughput spiked, comfortably accommodating the inrushing order-fulfilment requests for cross-border warehousing and logistics from merchants around the world, driven by the online shopping boom since the Covid-19 lockdown.

Demands for global warehousing service has dramatically surged with the flourishing cross-border e-commerce businesses in recent. Custom statistics indicate that in 2020, Chinese cross-border trade volume amounted to RMB1.69 trillion (€0.23 trillion), rising 31.1% from the previous year and the figure is estimated to go up to RMB16 trillion (€2.21 trillion) in 2021. By 2020, the number of overseas warehouses owned by Chinese operators exceeded 1,800, totalling more than 12 million sq m in land area.

However, cross-border warehouse operators are often confronted with some hard nuts to crack.

To start with, a major issue that constantly vexes warehouse owners operating overseas is staff shortages and the rising cost of hiring local labourers. They also found it a headache to maintain a stable workforce in their warehouses, which are often located near commercial hubs in industrialised countries, even with above-average level wages. Automating their warehouses has become a pressing issue.

The second challenge is the huge number of SKUs owned by different merchants, which could range from consumer electronics to baby toys. The fact has raised concerns of storage density and picking efficiency. To meet consumers’ growing demands for short parcels delivery time, furnishing a warehouse with robots that can handle complex order-fulfilment tasks can be a rewarding decision.

Last but not least, a flexible warehousing solution that can be swiftly deployed weighs heavily for cross-border warehouse owners whose growing businesses can’t wait for too long.

WINIT, who found no shortcuts to address those concerns, found the HAI Robotics’ solution a good match for the needs of high storage density, goods-handling accuracy, operation efficiency and flexibility.

With the HAIPICK A42 robot that allows picking and sorting with eight loads in one movement, one worker can handle 450 pieces of goods per hour, which is three to four times faster than manual work. The solution has also improved storage density by 130% with spaces from 0.25m to 6.5m high being fully utilised. The HAIPICK system, which supports intelligent totes identification and labels reading, boasts 99.99% picking and sorting accuracy.

Kane Luo, Vice President of Sales from HAI Robotics, said that a customised plan was made for the project to improve performance, including elevated storage density and innovative workflows to facilitate necessary manual work: “We were primarily obliged to provide ACR system. However, we’ve taken into consideration the whole process from inbounds to packaging of outbound goods. The workstations were also ergonomically redesigned according to overseas standards.”

HAI claims success for e-commerce project

HAI Robotics, a global leader in Autonomous Case-handling Robotic (ACR) system for warehouse logistics, is calling its first project in the UK with Chinese cross-border warehouse operator WINIT a success, as deliveries for holiday shopping parcels are about to reach customers.

The project provides 120,000 storage locations with shelving height of 4.3m in a 10,000 sq m warehouse in Tamworth, Staffordshire. By deploying 100 HAIPICK A42 robots and 16 On-conveyor Picking Workstations in the warehouse, goods-handling efficiency is improved between three- and four-fold compared with manual work, with a daily handling volume of up to 50,000 pieces.

The warehouse owner WINIT is a Shanghai-based provider of overall solutions for cross-border e-commerce, and runs overseas warehousing and distribution services in Australia, the US and several European countries. With the project going live, it saw its warehouse throughput spiked, comfortably accommodating the inrushing order-fulfilment requests for cross-border warehousing and logistics from merchants around the world, driven by the online shopping boom since the Covid-19 lockdown.

Demands for global warehousing service has dramatically surged with the flourishing cross-border e-commerce businesses in recent. Custom statistics indicate that in 2020, Chinese cross-border trade volume amounted to RMB1.69 trillion (€0.23 trillion), rising 31.1% from the previous year and the figure is estimated to go up to RMB16 trillion (€2.21 trillion) in 2021. By 2020, the number of overseas warehouses owned by Chinese operators exceeded 1,800, totalling more than 12 million sq m in land area.

However, cross-border warehouse operators are often confronted with some hard nuts to crack.

To start with, a major issue that constantly vexes warehouse owners operating overseas is staff shortages and the rising cost of hiring local labourers. They also found it a headache to maintain a stable workforce in their warehouses, which are often located near commercial hubs in industrialised countries, even with above-average level wages. Automating their warehouses has become a pressing issue.

The second challenge is the huge number of SKUs owned by different merchants, which could range from consumer electronics to baby toys. The fact has raised concerns of storage density and picking efficiency. To meet consumers’ growing demands for short parcels delivery time, furnishing a warehouse with robots that can handle complex order-fulfilment tasks can be a rewarding decision.

Last but not least, a flexible warehousing solution that can be swiftly deployed weighs heavily for cross-border warehouse owners whose growing businesses can’t wait for too long.

WINIT, who found no shortcuts to address those concerns, found the HAI Robotics’ solution a good match for the needs of high storage density, goods-handling accuracy, operation efficiency and flexibility.

With the HAIPICK A42 robot that allows picking and sorting with eight loads in one movement, one worker can handle 450 pieces of goods per hour, which is three to four times faster than manual work. The solution has also improved storage density by 130% with spaces from 0.25m to 6.5m high being fully utilised. The HAIPICK system, which supports intelligent totes identification and labels reading, boasts 99.99% picking and sorting accuracy.

Kane Luo, Vice President of Sales from HAI Robotics, said that a customised plan was made for the project to improve performance, including elevated storage density and innovative workflows to facilitate necessary manual work: “We were primarily obliged to provide ACR system. However, we’ve taken into consideration the whole process from inbounds to packaging of outbound goods. The workstations were also ergonomically redesigned according to overseas standards.”

The future of forklifts is electric

With more and more forklift truck users opting for electric-power over IC-engine driven machines when the time comes to replace or upgrade their materials handling equipment fleet, the coming years are expected to bring a clear shift away from diesel and LPG towards electric forklifts. Indeed, Toyota Material Handling expect the UK market for electric counterbalanced forklift trucks to grow by as much as 10% in the next five years. In this article, Toyota’s counterbalance specialist, Paul Bowers, considers some of the factors driving the rise of the electric-powered forklift market.

According to the most reliable estimates, the forklift market has historically been split roughly 60/40 between LPG- or diesel-powered internal combustion engine (IC) trucks and battery-driven electric models – with diesel being the most dominant fuel. But the coming years are anticipated to bring a clear shift away from diesel and LPG towards electric forklifts.

At Toyota Material Handling, for example, we expect the UK market for electric counterbalanced forklift trucks to grow by as much as 10% in the next five years as more and more truck users opt for electric-power over IC-engine driven machines when the time comes to replace or upgrade their fleets.

The rise of the electric lift truck can be attributed to a number of different factors – including heightened environmental concerns, rising fuel prices and greater awareness of staff welfare.

Advances in battery technology, such as the further development of lithium-ion and  to a lesser extent (for now) hydrogen fuel cells, are also leading to greater interest in electric power, while the wide-ranging changes to intralogistics processes brought about by the seemingly relentless increase in internet shopping tend to favour electric trucks too.

Of course, environmental issues have been on the corporate agenda for many years but recent talk of the introduction of a ‘carbon emissions tax’ has seen a sharp increase in the truck users that include like-for-like carbon emissions comparisons as part of their forklift fleet purchasing process. IC-engine trucks rarely come top of the class in such tests, which will not be a surprise to many given that electric-powered trucks have always been perceived to have the edge over the IC-engine alternative in all matters ‘green’.

But it would be wrong to conclude that the electric truck market is only growing because diesel sales are in decline: recent developments in technology mean the electric lift truck is now a highly sophisticated product that offers real business benefits to the broadest range of users. And, furthermore, today’s battery-driven forklifts are capable of performing highly effectively within the type of harsh environments that historically only diesel trucks would be considered suitable for.

Perhaps the single biggest technological advance behind the upsurge in electric truck sales is the arrival of the lithium-ion battery. While lead acid remains by far the dominant battery type within the electric-powered forklift market, sales of lithium-ion forklifts have been on a sustained upward curve for some time.

Although it is estimated that in the region of 90% of all electric forklifts in operation throughout the world are still running on lead acid batteries, the lithium-ion solution has now become well established as a viable alternative. Indeed, nearly a quarter of all Toyota electric-powered forklift trucks ordered for delivery in the UK now feature lithium-ion battery (LiB) technology.

Today, lithium-ion is revolutionising the way that some companies operate their intralogistics processes. Lithium-ion batteries have the ability to be recharged in as little as one hour – which increases a truck’s overall availability. One hour’s charging will give in the region of 4 to 5 hours of operating time. Also, as these batteries allow for opportunity charging, trucks can be recharged anywhere by the operator during breaks in a shift or other periods of downtime. As a result, there is no need to swap batteries – so dedicated charging rooms and spare batteries are not necessary.

Hydrogen fuel cells are also emerging as another viable alternative to lead acid batteries. At the present time, Hydrogen only becomes financially realistic where in the region of 90+ trucks are in operation at one location due to the significant investment required in hydrogen generation and storage systems, so the potential user market is currently somewhat limited.

But large fleet operators are keen to embrace the technology and Toyota Hydrogen fuel cell-powered forklifts are already operating at sites across the Nordic region and Europe as well as Australia. Meanwhile in the automotive sector Toyota’s hydrogen-powered Mirai is at the forefront of a new age of hydrogen fuel cell cars that deliver long distance zero-emissions driving.

Of course, as with any new development, when the product matures the price will drop and there is every reason to believe hydrogen fuel cell power will be within reach of every business with a forklift fleet in the not-too-distant future.

But, despite the worldwide rush to eliminate – or at least minimise – the use of fossil fuels and the myriad benefits that electric trucks offer users in terms of running costs, productivity, reduced pollution etc, it is unlikely that we are witnessing the last days of the diesel-powered lift truck.

There are currently still numerous applications, particularly where extra-heavy lifting is involved and truck capacities of 8t and over are required, where a diesel forklift remains the best option. This might not be the case in 10 years’ time though.

Companies considering switching from IC- to electric-engine forklift trucks, should always discuss their options with their MHE supplier who will be able to assess the benefits of going electric for every type of operation.

The future of forklifts is electric

With more and more forklift truck users opting for electric-power over IC-engine driven machines when the time comes to replace or upgrade their materials handling equipment fleet, the coming years are expected to bring a clear shift away from diesel and LPG towards electric forklifts. Indeed, Toyota Material Handling expect the UK market for electric counterbalanced forklift trucks to grow by as much as 10% in the next five years. In this article, Toyota’s counterbalance specialist, Paul Bowers, considers some of the factors driving the rise of the electric-powered forklift market.

According to the most reliable estimates, the forklift market has historically been split roughly 60/40 between LPG- or diesel-powered internal combustion engine (IC) trucks and battery-driven electric models – with diesel being the most dominant fuel. But the coming years are anticipated to bring a clear shift away from diesel and LPG towards electric forklifts.

At Toyota Material Handling, for example, we expect the UK market for electric counterbalanced forklift trucks to grow by as much as 10% in the next five years as more and more truck users opt for electric-power over IC-engine driven machines when the time comes to replace or upgrade their fleets.

The rise of the electric lift truck can be attributed to a number of different factors – including heightened environmental concerns, rising fuel prices and greater awareness of staff welfare.

Advances in battery technology, such as the further development of lithium-ion and  to a lesser extent (for now) hydrogen fuel cells, are also leading to greater interest in electric power, while the wide-ranging changes to intralogistics processes brought about by the seemingly relentless increase in internet shopping tend to favour electric trucks too.

Of course, environmental issues have been on the corporate agenda for many years but recent talk of the introduction of a ‘carbon emissions tax’ has seen a sharp increase in the truck users that include like-for-like carbon emissions comparisons as part of their forklift fleet purchasing process. IC-engine trucks rarely come top of the class in such tests, which will not be a surprise to many given that electric-powered trucks have always been perceived to have the edge over the IC-engine alternative in all matters ‘green’.

But it would be wrong to conclude that the electric truck market is only growing because diesel sales are in decline: recent developments in technology mean the electric lift truck is now a highly sophisticated product that offers real business benefits to the broadest range of users. And, furthermore, today’s battery-driven forklifts are capable of performing highly effectively within the type of harsh environments that historically only diesel trucks would be considered suitable for.

Perhaps the single biggest technological advance behind the upsurge in electric truck sales is the arrival of the lithium-ion battery. While lead acid remains by far the dominant battery type within the electric-powered forklift market, sales of lithium-ion forklifts have been on a sustained upward curve for some time.

Although it is estimated that in the region of 90% of all electric forklifts in operation throughout the world are still running on lead acid batteries, the lithium-ion solution has now become well established as a viable alternative. Indeed, nearly a quarter of all Toyota electric-powered forklift trucks ordered for delivery in the UK now feature lithium-ion battery (LiB) technology.

Today, lithium-ion is revolutionising the way that some companies operate their intralogistics processes. Lithium-ion batteries have the ability to be recharged in as little as one hour – which increases a truck’s overall availability. One hour’s charging will give in the region of 4 to 5 hours of operating time. Also, as these batteries allow for opportunity charging, trucks can be recharged anywhere by the operator during breaks in a shift or other periods of downtime. As a result, there is no need to swap batteries – so dedicated charging rooms and spare batteries are not necessary.

Hydrogen fuel cells are also emerging as another viable alternative to lead acid batteries. At the present time, Hydrogen only becomes financially realistic where in the region of 90+ trucks are in operation at one location due to the significant investment required in hydrogen generation and storage systems, so the potential user market is currently somewhat limited.

But large fleet operators are keen to embrace the technology and Toyota Hydrogen fuel cell-powered forklifts are already operating at sites across the Nordic region and Europe as well as Australia. Meanwhile in the automotive sector Toyota’s hydrogen-powered Mirai is at the forefront of a new age of hydrogen fuel cell cars that deliver long distance zero-emissions driving.

Of course, as with any new development, when the product matures the price will drop and there is every reason to believe hydrogen fuel cell power will be within reach of every business with a forklift fleet in the not-too-distant future.

But, despite the worldwide rush to eliminate – or at least minimise – the use of fossil fuels and the myriad benefits that electric trucks offer users in terms of running costs, productivity, reduced pollution etc, it is unlikely that we are witnessing the last days of the diesel-powered lift truck.

There are currently still numerous applications, particularly where extra-heavy lifting is involved and truck capacities of 8t and over are required, where a diesel forklift remains the best option. This might not be the case in 10 years’ time though.

Companies considering switching from IC- to electric-engine forklift trucks, should always discuss their options with their MHE supplier who will be able to assess the benefits of going electric for every type of operation.

Ashworth joins Kinaxia board

Kinaxia Logistics has appointed leading industry figure Neil Ashworth to its board to support the development and roll-out of its digitalisation strategy.

Ashworth has more than 25 years’ board level experience in the logistics, supply chain, retail and e-commerce industries, with a track record of helping companies and organisations remain at the forefront of market innovation and transform their operations into the digital era.

He is a former chairman of the Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport and in a recent role was the director of delivery channels for the Department of Health and Social Care’s Covid-19 testing programme across the UK.

Before that post he was chief strategy officer and chief commercial officer at Yodel Delivery Network and chief executive of Collect+. He previously also held senior roles at companies including Tesco and Woolworths.

Currently Ashworth is non-executive chairman of private equity-backed e-commerce fulfilment specialist Selazar, a non-executive director of global healthcare supplies business 2San Global and an adviser to product data technology business IVIS Group.

Kinaxia chief executive Simon Hobbs said: “Neil brings a great deal of experience to our board, both from a supply chain and retail perspective, and will help us refine and implement the digitalisation of the business.

“I look forward to working closely with Neil and benefiting from his proven expertise.”

Ashworth said: “I am delighted to be joining the team at Kinaxia Logistics as they build on their already impressive journey to create a leading force in the UK logistics market.

“My experience complements the capabilities of the existing team, and I look forward to working closely with Simon to drive future growth as a non-executive on the board of directors, which reinforces and highlights the board’s commitment to promoting good corporate governance.”

Kinaxia employs more than 1,600 staff across its businesses and has a fleet of more than 800 vehicles which transport goods for supermarkets and other retailers as well as the leisure, food and drink and manufacturing sectors.

Headquartered in Macclesfield, Cheshire (UK), Kinaxia offers contract packing, e-fulfilment, returns management and storage services from its nationwide warehouse facilities.

Ashworth joins Kinaxia board

Kinaxia Logistics has appointed leading industry figure Neil Ashworth to its board to support the development and roll-out of its digitalisation strategy.

Ashworth has more than 25 years’ board level experience in the logistics, supply chain, retail and e-commerce industries, with a track record of helping companies and organisations remain at the forefront of market innovation and transform their operations into the digital era.

He is a former chairman of the Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport and in a recent role was the director of delivery channels for the Department of Health and Social Care’s Covid-19 testing programme across the UK.

Before that post he was chief strategy officer and chief commercial officer at Yodel Delivery Network and chief executive of Collect+. He previously also held senior roles at companies including Tesco and Woolworths.

Currently Ashworth is non-executive chairman of private equity-backed e-commerce fulfilment specialist Selazar, a non-executive director of global healthcare supplies business 2San Global and an adviser to product data technology business IVIS Group.

Kinaxia chief executive Simon Hobbs said: “Neil brings a great deal of experience to our board, both from a supply chain and retail perspective, and will help us refine and implement the digitalisation of the business.

“I look forward to working closely with Neil and benefiting from his proven expertise.”

Ashworth said: “I am delighted to be joining the team at Kinaxia Logistics as they build on their already impressive journey to create a leading force in the UK logistics market.

“My experience complements the capabilities of the existing team, and I look forward to working closely with Simon to drive future growth as a non-executive on the board of directors, which reinforces and highlights the board’s commitment to promoting good corporate governance.”

Kinaxia employs more than 1,600 staff across its businesses and has a fleet of more than 800 vehicles which transport goods for supermarkets and other retailers as well as the leisure, food and drink and manufacturing sectors.

Headquartered in Macclesfield, Cheshire (UK), Kinaxia offers contract packing, e-fulfilment, returns management and storage services from its nationwide warehouse facilities.

 “Game-changing” solution for ultra-cold pharma transport

The launch of the latest solution from pharmaceutical thermal protection specialist Tower Cold Chain is cited as a “game-changer” by customers who have tested the new KTM42D Tower Double Euro Pallet Ultra Cold in the field.

The KTM42D is a fully reusable double-pallet temperature-controlled packaging container, for the transportation and extended storage of products that require an internal temperature range of -80˚C to -60˚C.

It is therefore ideally suited for the transportation of vaccines, life science products and any other product requiring a stable temperature environment during transportation or storage.

The “game-changing” nature of the KTM42D lies in the use of Tower’s proven robust, reliable and reusable technology, to achieve the optimum balance between ultra-low temperatures, shipment size, simplicity of use, and reusability.

“All of our solutions are developed to meet the needs of pharmaceutical manufacturers, 3PL providers and airlines,” commented Niall Balfour, CEO of Tower Cold Chain. “As such, the KTM42D has been designed to accept two full Euro pallets and maintain the stored contents at less than –60°C for over 94 hours.

“Initial feedback has been beyond our expectations, with one partner calling it a ‘game changer.’ We can’t wait to show customers everything that the KTM42D can do,” he added.

The KTM42D is compatible with all major modes of transit delivery, including wide-bodied aircraft, reefers and all road-transport options.

By using a passive temperature control system that removes the need for external power, and datalogging technology to provide real-time confirmation of the internal temperature, no human intervention is required during transportation.

Instead, the KTM42D features an easy load and unload process through double door access. With less than five-minute load-and-reload time, human contact with dry-ice is minimised to help maintain industry-leading health and safety working conditions.

Temperature is consistent throughout the payload to prevent any temperature differentiation in container. Indeed, when stored in a (-20°C) freezer unit the KTM42D maintains temperatures of under -60°C for over nine days and can be replenished with dry ice in under five minutes, providing unlimited deep freeze time.

The KTM42D is available across Tower’s growing global network of strategically located hubs, providing availability within 24 hours or less. In addition, all KTM42Ds are fully reusable, helping customers to meet sustainability targets with a circular solution for their pharmaceutical supply chain.

Time to winterproof safety signage

Winter is not the safest season. Slips and falls increase dramatically, especially when working outdoors, or simply walking to an office from the parking lot. When the cold and dark seem to conspire against health and safety and the need increases to highlight new safety communication to lower the risks, Brady is proposing signage solutions to help make the winter safe.

Reliable safety identification solutions to support Go for Zero programmes throughout winter include:

  • ISO-compliant ultra-visible reflective signs with excellent outdoor reliability to clearly identify on-site winter slip hazards and other risks, and easily guide employees, even in the dark
  • reliable pipe markers easy to apply to wet, rainy and cold outdoor pipe surfaces to make them compliant with any regulation or standard
  • PaintStripe stencils to quickly re-paint or create new, straight outdoor floor marking
  • outdoor safety cones and A-board floor stands to immediately highlight ice patches and other emerging winter hazards

While any solution can be pre-printed to a customer’s specifications, Brady also offers full flexibility to get through winter. With the BBP37 Multicolour & Cut Sign & Label Printer at their premises, a customer can quickly update safety and facility identification to reduce risks by:

  • creating reliable, industrial-grade outdoor signs, labels and pipe markers in any shape
  • using in stand-alone mode, or add Brady Workstation apps to design an even wider range of signs, pipe markers and safety labels
  • stocking a few blank label supplies – requiring minimal storage space – to sustain safety identification needs throughout winter

Time to winterproof safety signage

Winter is not the safest season. Slips and falls increase dramatically, especially when working outdoors, or simply walking to an office from the parking lot. When the cold and dark seem to conspire against health and safety and the need increases to highlight new safety communication to lower the risks, Brady is proposing signage solutions to help make the winter safe.

Reliable safety identification solutions to support Go for Zero programmes throughout winter include:

  • ISO-compliant ultra-visible reflective signs with excellent outdoor reliability to clearly identify on-site winter slip hazards and other risks, and easily guide employees, even in the dark
  • reliable pipe markers easy to apply to wet, rainy and cold outdoor pipe surfaces to make them compliant with any regulation or standard
  • PaintStripe stencils to quickly re-paint or create new, straight outdoor floor marking
  • outdoor safety cones and A-board floor stands to immediately highlight ice patches and other emerging winter hazards

While any solution can be pre-printed to a customer’s specifications, Brady also offers full flexibility to get through winter. With the BBP37 Multicolour & Cut Sign & Label Printer at their premises, a customer can quickly update safety and facility identification to reduce risks by:

  • creating reliable, industrial-grade outdoor signs, labels and pipe markers in any shape
  • using in stand-alone mode, or add Brady Workstation apps to design an even wider range of signs, pipe markers and safety labels
  • stocking a few blank label supplies – requiring minimal storage space – to sustain safety identification needs throughout winter

GEFCO tests biodiesel fuel in car transporters

In November 2021, GEFCO France and Gardien Transports started testing synthetic biodiesel made from waste oil and fat as an alternative fuel for two car transporters distributing new vehicles in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. This one-year project supports GEFCO France’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions from its finished vehicles logistics (FVL) operations.

For these tests, GEFCO France and Gardien Transports have selected Altens PUR-XTL synthetic biodiesel. This alternative fuel is produced exclusively from waste materials, and can be used in regular diesel vehicles without any technical modifications. Compared to standard diesel, PUR-XTL promises to cut CO2 emissions by 85-90% and fine/ultrafine particles by up to 65% on short journeys with 500km of autonomy.

After committing to the EVcom voluntary carbon reduction program in 2019 and Objectif CO2 standards in early 2021, GEFCO France is now testing alternative fuels (natural gas and biogas) and rolling out a programme for its proprietary finished vehicles logistics business focused on four priorities:

Flow optimisation. Transport schedules, plans and loads are regularly revised and optimised to reduce the flow of trucks and avoid empty return journeys whenever possible.

Vehicles. GEFCO France is aiming to upgrade 100% of its FVL fleet to Euro 6 vehicle emissions standards by the end of 2021. Through these upgrades, the fleet’s fuel consumption at 100km already dropped by 10% between 2015 and 2020. GEFCO France is also asking its partners to make similar upgrades.

Drivers. Since 2015, GEFCO France drivers have followed an eco-driving training programme, renewable every two years. At the end of 2020, 80% had completed this training.

Fuel. To monitor equipment performance and optimise maintenance, GEFCO France tractors are equipped with integrated telematic systems to adapt fuel consumption to loads and road conditions.

This partnership further demonstrates its commitment to a more sustainable logistics sector in France.

“Like GEFCO France, Gardien Transports has signed the Objectif CO2 charter to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” said Frédéric Briand, COO Finished Vehicle Logistics at GEFCO France. “Our partner is committed to moving the transportation and logistics business forward. Gardien Transports’ values reflect our own, providing all the more reason to support its efforts.”

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