International shipping and logistics company DFDS recently received three new trailers with Carrier Transicold Vector HE 19 refrigeration units as part of the company’s ongoing efforts to improve sustainability.
Chosen for fuel efficiency and improved refrigerant containment, the new Vector HE 19 units, mounted to 13.6-meter (44.6-foot) Gray & Adams trailers, are replacements for competitor systems. They’re the latest Carrier-cooled assets to enter service in DFDS’s 122-unit refrigerated trailer fleet in the Shetland Isles, Scotland.
“Carrier Transicold is a market leader when it comes to sustainable solutions for refrigerated transport,” said Jack Hodgson, fleet manager at DFDS. “Purchasing these units supports our CSR commitment, which aims to dramatically reduce the company’s carbon footprint. A cleaner, more efficient trailer fleet will play a very important role in that process.”
In addition, the Vector HE 19 unit’s use of a fully hermetic scroll compressor and economizer helps deliver a 40% increase in refrigeration capacity during pull-down, while reducing the chance of refrigerant escape by 50%. The system also is 19% more efficient when plugged into the electrical grid on standby, Carrier claimed. Combined, these factors deliver reduced diesel, maintenance and electricity bills, while helping shrink DFDS’s carbon footprint.
“These trailers operate very intensive routes and are only ever off the road when undergoing maintenance,” Hodgson said. “The improved fuel savings and refrigerant containment will help with both our environmental credentials and our operating costs, so it was a win-win.”
DFDS operates 800 refrigerated trailers across its commercial vehicle fleet. The three new units are expected to remain in operation for 10 years, working seven days a week transporting fresh fish from the Shetland Islands to processing plants on the mainland.
In addition to Carrier Transicold’s latest trailer technology, DFDS also is improving the sustainability of its short-sea maritime operations with the delivery of 50 new Carrier Transicold NaturaLINE refrigerated shipping container systems, announced late last year.
The first and only technology of its kind, the NaturaLINE unit uses carbon dioxide refrigerant with a global warming potential (GWP) of 1. Its GWP ranks lowest among all current container system refrigerants, which have GWPs ranging from hundreds to thousands of times greater, the company said.
Visit carriertransicold.co.uk for more information.
