Australia’s first regular production solar-powered electric trailer refrigeration unit (TRU) has hit the road with a real customer. Family transport giant Wickham Freight Lines took delivery of the revolutionary reefer this week.
Refrigerated trailers (reefers) are essential for transporting fresh food and flowers from the farm to the local market; The problem is that they pollute a lot, powered by high-sulfur, red-dye diesel generators that run 24 hours a day, even if the truck that pulls them is completely electric. That constant diesel consumption spews CO₂ and NOx into both industrial and residential areas, and contributes significantly to fleet carbon emissions and noise pollution at a time when several municipalities are taking steps to regulate both.
It is, as they say, “a real problem,” but Sunswap Endurance solved it with a solar-powered reefer container that can keep food and pharmaceuticals cold in transit without burning a drop of diesel fuel, and now they have real customers.
sunny days ahead
Wickham Freight Lines, one of Australia’s largest privately owned haulage companies, decided to purchase the Sunswap Endurance solar trailer units after an initial trial, running from Sydney to Brisbane and back last summer on a route covering a total of 1,670 km (~1,040 miles) over more than 30 hours of driving.
After the Wickham drivers finished the round trip with more than 65% of battery capacity still, the purchase was a no-brainer.
“I put the Sunswap Endurance into the fleet and told the team to stretch it, treat it like a normal unit,” explains Graham Keogh, director of Wickham Freight Lines. “We were really impressed. I’m a true believer. I love technology and I’m not a real technology person at all. You can see it’s a winner…the performance, reliability and operational savings were beyond what we expected. For a company like ours, which operates a large fleet up and down the East Coast, with a big focus on refrigerated and cold chain transportation, this technology makes real business sense.”
Sunswap Endurance first showed off its new solar refrigerated unit at HVIA TruckShowX in the Hunter Valley last May. It’s a compelling and insultingly simple technology, and I, for one, hope this customer delivery is just the first of many. Let us know what you think of these guys in the comments.
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