Thermo King’s new hybrid refrigeration units hit road in UK
Thermo King says it’s now delivering its new hybrid refrigeration systems for trucks and high-loaders to customers across Europe.
The T-Series Hybrid and UT Hybrid refrigeration systems are designed to switch between diesel and electric modes, allowing transporters to operate in inner cities, residential areas and low-emission zones with the unit’s diesel engine turned off.
Greggs, a United Kingdom-based bakery food-on-the-go retailer with more than 1,800 shops nationwide, is one of the first customers in Europe to experience the benefits of the new hybrid refrigeration systems, Thermo King said. Three new trucks with Thermo King’s hybrid systems will contribute to lowering the environmental impact and reducing operating costs of their truck transport operations in central London.
“Thermo King units have been our systems of choice for several years now,” said Richard Penna, group logistics manager at Greggs. “Their units have delivered good flexibility and work efficiency to our operations, and we could also always count on the Thermo King dealer service network to support us. We’re very cautious about the sustainability of our transport operations. It is paramount for us to operate in inner cities with as little noise and reduced emissions as possible. It was a natural choice to work with Thermo King and equip our trucks with these new units that can easily switch from diesel operation to electric, reduce the sound level and eliminate emissions. On top of that, we expect to benefit from the lower daily fuel consumption.”
The new hybrid single- and multi-temperature solution for trucks feature Frigoblock alternator and inverter-drive technology. The nose-mount T-Series Hybrid and under-mount UT Hybrid refrigeration automatically switch between electric and diesel operation as required or necessary. This enables the transport companies to operate in inner cities, residential areas and low emission zones with the refrigeration unit’s diesel engine turned off.
The system also is well accepted by drivers, mainly due to the simple and smooth transition from one drive technology to the other. The driver only needs to set the vehicle when leaving the depot and the system will switch electric and diesel modes seamlessly during the working day depending on the unit’s requirements.
“Thermo King Hybrid technology was designed to help transport and delivery companies future-proof their refrigerated operations and investments. With this solution they can stay ahead of regulations, control their total cost of ownership and achieve important sustainability goals,” said Colm O’Grady, product manager at Thermo King. “Thermo King was the first to offer its European customers a trailer hybrid refrigeration. Now, our truck transport customers can also benefit from this cleaner and electrified transport refrigeration to make urban distribution more flexible and sustainable.”
The T-Series Hybrid and UT Hybrid solutions are aligned with Trane Technologies’ 2030 sustainability commitments, and the commitment to reduce customers’ carbon emissions by one gigaton–equivalent to the annual emissions of Italy, France and the United Kingdom combined.
