Sainsbury’s DC drives lower carbon footprint
At its depot in Northampton, Sainsbury’s believes it has created a facility with the lowest carbon footprint of any depot of its kind, by using a range of green construction methods and energy efficient systems, including Calor LPG powered forklift trucks.
The fleet of seven Toyota trucks is fitted with fixed fuel tanks, which have an increased capacity and require few refueling stops compared to cylinders. This reduces truck downtime and increases productivity.
Sainsbury’s considered a number of elements in the construction of the depot, starting with its location, which was chosen as it offers opportunities to minimise mileage and delivery time to stores.
Other energy-efficient innovations used in the construction of the depot include a combined heating, cooling and power unit to provide a significant proportion of the facility’s electricity through the reclamation of heat energy, and a day-lit roof to minimise the need for artificial lighting.
Benefits of selecting LPG
Toyota Material Handling UK National Account Manager, Steve Cole says LPG was the obvious choice when it came to selecting a fuel for the depot’s material handling needs, thanks to its greener credentials:
“LPG delivers a number of benefits compared to diesel, including reduced emissions, which allows forklift trucks to operate in more sensitive areas – an important consideration when transporting consumable goods as, in today’s stringent food environment, health and safety is a priority.
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An LPG powered fleet also eliminates the unsightly black soot that can appear on packaged goods when diesel forklift trucks are used, making it ideal for use in food depots.”
An LPG forklift truck fitted with a three-way catalytic converter and closed loop engine control system monitors and adjusts its fuel-to-air mixture 1,000 times per second, to give optimum burn and cutting fuel consumption by up to 20 percent.
Steve Cole continues, “Of further benefit to Sainsbury’s was the flexibility of refueling from a bulk tank, as opposed to the battery management system required for electric forklift trucks in comparable 24/7 operations. Recycling is also less complex as there is no traction battery to consider.”
Sustainable supplier
Calor has proven to be a sustainable supplier, by recycling the steel used in its LPG cylinders when they reach the end of their lifecycle.
The company has also taken steps to reduce the carbon emissions produced by its delivery fleet. Since the introduction of the Think Tank technology, which automatically notifies Calor when a customer is running low on gas, the distance travelled by delivery trucks has reduced as journeys are only made when they are needed.
"One of our company principles is ‘Respect for Our Environment.’ We wanted to introduce a more environmentally friendly forklift truck to our Northampton depot that is as efficient as a diesel truck but with the environmental advantages," concluded Derek Boghurst, material handling manager at Sainsbury’s.
