Commercial GreenFleet January 2022

JANUARY 2022

DRIVING THE SWITCH TO CLEANER COMMERCIAL FLEETS

NEWS

RETROFIT TECHNOLOGY

TRANSPORT DECARBONISATION

THE TRANSFORMATION OF ROAD TRANSPORT How the logistics industry is powering towards its goal of net zero emissions by 2050

LAST MILE LOGISTICS

Commercial Vehicle News

ALTERNATIVE FUELS

DHL Supply Chain invests in 13 new Volvo bio-LNG trucks

DHL Supply Chain has announced the addition of 13 new Volvo FH Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) tractor units to its fleet as part of its GoGreen plan and commitment to finding innovative solutions to reduce its environmental impact.

The new additions join DHL Supply Chain’s growing fleet

of gas trucks. The Volvo FH 6x2 tractor units are equipped with Globetrotter cabs and specified with 155kg LNG tanks for maximum range of 1,000km. The new vehicles will deliver up to 80% reduction in carbon emissions when fuelled with bio-LNG and 10-20% with fossil gas.

Ian Clough, Managing Director, Network Logistics and Transport, UK & Ireland, DHL Supply Chain says: “As part of the world’s largest logistics company, we have a clear set of ambitious environmental targets to achieve, as well as ones to deliver for our customers. To help enable greener supply chains

and support our customers in their proactive approach to sustainable transport, we continue to work closely with both our customers and partners to find the best solutions.”

“The Volvo gas truck is an excellent product, and Bio-LNG is a viable option to achieve significant carbon reduction in long-haul distribution. We’ve been impressed with the FH LNG units we already have in service and our intention is to accelerate our investment in gas trucks moving forward. We are talking to a number of different customers with the aim to have more than 500 gas vehicles in operation across the fleet by 2025.”

The new FH LNGs use small amounts of diesel to initiate ignition of the air-fuel mixture.

This enables the Volvo G13C engine to deliver the same 460 hp and 2,300 Nm of torque as its diesel-only counterpart, with matching driveability, reliability, and service intervals.

READ MORE https://tinyurl.com/4ke6e6u7

RENTAL & LEASING

One hundred LEVC VN5 vans added to Europcar fleet Europcar Mobility Group UK has added 100 London Electric Vehicle Company (LEVC) VN5 vans to its vans and truck fleet.

The VN5 is an important component in supporting Europcar Mobility Group’s commitment to reduce its impact on the environment through its ‘One Sustainable Fleet’ programme. This programme aims to reduce carbon emissions for its car and van fleet, including targeting to have green vehicles (less than 50 g CO2/km) accounting for 20 per cent of its car and van fleet by the end of 2024.

LEVC products are driven exclusively by electricity through the company’s eCity powertrain technology, which features an additional on-board generator (a small 1.5 litre petrol engine), known as a range-extender.

VN5 is based on the same architecture and proven eCity

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technology as LEVC’s TX electric taxi. With a pure EV range of over 60 miles and a total flexible range of 304 miles VN5 is ideally suited to urban deliveries in zero-emission mode, as well as longer journeys outside of town.

Ron Santiago, Managing Director, Europcar Mobility Group UK said: “Research conducted in 2021 found that 89 per cent of businesses expect a quarter or more of their fleet to enter a Clean Air Zone more than once a week. Yet there is a clear gap in availability of electric vehicles, as well as cost barriers for outright purchase. There is also concern that electrified vans may not be able to meet the high pressure demands of businesses, with uncertainty about the range they can offer.

“Bringing the VN5 on to the Europcar Vans & Trucks fleet addresses these concerns on several levels. Available as part

DRIVING THE SWITCH TO CLEANER FLEETS | www.greenfleet.net

of our long-term rental solutions, it means businesses have the flexibility to ‘try before they buy’, without having to commit to lease or outright purchase, giving them the chance to really understand how electric will work for them and their drivers. Long-term rental of the VN5 also provides important financial flexibility

while the UK economy remains uncertain. Plus, crucially, the VN5 gives customers a compliant solution eliminating the need to factor in additional costs for entering Clean Air Zones.”

READ MORE https://tinyurl.com/47nanjfk

Commercial Vehicle News

LAST MILE LOGISTICS

Trial to decarbonise central London retail distribution Volta Trucks has partnered with The Crown Estate and Clipper Logistics to decarbonise and consolidate deliveries into London’s Regent Street retailers.

Set to launch as a trial in summer 2022, the electric Volta Zero will conduct zeroemission deliveries between the consolidation centre and stores.

The Crown Estate’s London portfolio spans 10 million sq ft and comprises of Regent Street and around half of St James’s, with an offer extending across the workplace, retail, dining, leisure, and residential sectors.

For The Crown Estate’s Regent Street customers, this offers access to a single accessible consolidation centre, just outside London’s congestion charge zone, where their deliveries are combined and dispatched to and from store.

With its range of 95 - 125 miles, the full-electric Volta Zero offers zero-emission deliveries between the consolidation centre and stores. Its large 8.6tonne payload also removes several smaller 3.5-tonne vans from the streets, which helps reduce traffic congestion.

Since 2008, Clipper Logistics have been working with The Crown Estate to operate the Regent Street delivery scheme, which has been consolidating multiple individual goods delivery trips into fewer combined journeys, helping to tackle London’s traffic congestion,

improving local air quality, and supporting retailer efficiency.

The initiative was the first of its kind in London and has benefited many Regent Street customers.

READ MORE https://tinyurl.com/5yj8u5j5

ELECTRIC TRUCKS

Tesco takes on electric trucks for food transportation Tesco has taken on two fully electric heavy freight articulated trucks to transport products between Cardiff and Magor.

Two new 37 tonne DAF electric vehicles will transport food and other products from Wentloog rail terminal outside Cardiff to Tesco’s distribution centre in Magor, Wales, in partnership with logistics and international freight forwarding company FSEW. These first two lorries will replace around 65,000 dieselfuelled road miles with clean green energy, removing 87.4 tonnes of CO2e per year. To

power the new service FSEW has installed charging points at its site in South Wales that provide enough energy to power these large vehicles for 100 miles before needing to charge again.

At around 30 miles each way the Wentloog - Magor journey is an ideal location to understand the potential and range of these lorries for use throughout the UK and elsewhere in Tesco’s fleet.

The trucks will contribute to Tesco’s efforts to achieve net zero emissions in its own operations by 2035, and FSEW’s work to replace more than 40 diesel vehicles with low-

carbon alternatives and switch to fleet-wide zero-emissions transport operations by 2025.

Jason Tarry, Tesco UK and ROI CEO said: “Tesco’s distribution network is one of the largest in the UK and plays an important role in our efforts to become net zero in our own operations by 2035. We’ve already made progress by starting our switch to electric home delivery vans and rolling out electric vehicles charging points for our customers. I’m excited that Tesco can also lead the way in electric haulage innovation, helping to tackle this last source

of road transport emissions with the support of FSEW.” Geoff Tomlinson, FSEW Managing Director said: “This is a landmark day for us here at FSEW, representing a major step forward in our commitment to providing zero emissions transport freight services.

Together we are working to create a cleaner and greener logistics experience. This is transformational for the UK’s commercial and retail industries and is just the start of our work to supply electric heavy freight vehicles to customers such as Tesco.”

“Setting the industry standard is important to us which is why we also have plans underway to create an eFreight hub in Cardiff which will include a low carbon fuel facility for the use of all freight providers and commercial and municipal operators and are also launching this month two further trucks running on 100% renewable biomethane fuel for freight transport use.”

READ MORE https://tinyurl.com/2p9ac9tp

January 2022 | COMMERCIAL GREENFLEET

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Commercial Vehicle News

TELEMATICS

Asda’s grocery delivery drivers achieve CO2 savings with Lightfoot

Lightfoot’s driver coaching system has been installed across Asda’s entire 3,000-vehicle fleet, allowing them to cut CO2 and improve road safety.

Lightfoot connects to the vehicle’s on-board computer

and converts data into live driving advice that helps the company’s drivers do their job more safely and efficiently.

Lightfoot can help fleets achieve a reduction in accidents while cutting fuel and CO2

emissions by 15% each. This is achieved by giving drivers ownership of their performance and rewarding them with prizes and giveaways through an app on their smartphones.

At the end of each journey,

drivers are awarded a score in the app based on their driving style, allowing them to see how their driving is improving over time, as well as entering into friendly competition with colleagues as part of a company-wide drivers’ league.

Those drivers who achieve ‘Elite Driver’ status can enter The Drivers’ Lottery to win weekly cash prizes of up to £100 and enter giveaways.

Since the rollout began in February 2021, drivers have already claimed rewards including an Amazon Echo Dot and a mini drone, as well as cash prizes totalling over £13,213.

Asda’s continual driver engagement means that the supermarket will save the equivalent of 2,482 tonnes of CO2 per year – enough to power 9.1 million washing machine cycles or boil 52.4 million kettles of water, which is enough boiled water to provide almost 6 cups of tea to each person in the UK. READ MORE https://tinyurl.com/w7yf5m32

HYDDROGEN

Production begins on new Peugeot e-Expert Hydrogen The very first production Peugeot e-Expert Hydrogen has left the production line – with Watea

by Michelin the first customer to take delivery of the vehicle.

The new Peugeot e-Expert Hydrogen features a hydrogen fuel cell system combined with a 10.5kWh battery that helps power the electric motor. A full refuel with compressed hydrogen takes just three minutes, resulting in 249 miles (WLTP) of electric range, and a maximum speed of 80mph.

The e-Expert Hydrogen is available in two lengths, Standard and Long. Both variants share identical load volumes with the diesel and petrol variants, with up to 6.1m3 of load capacity inside. With a maximum payload of up to 1,000kg and a towing capacity of 1,000kg – the e-EXPERT Hydrogen is a practical, zero emissions solution for a variety of businesses and fleets.

Linda Jackson, CEO of the

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Peugeot brand, said: “With the e-Expert Hydrogen, Peugeot is taking the lead in a future zero emission technology that is particularly relevant to the light commercial vehicle market: hydrogen electric technology allows intensive daily use without the need for recharging, a decisive

DRIVING THE SWITCH TO CLEANER FLEETS | www.greenfleet.net

advantage for professionals who, in a single day, have to cover several hundred kilometres on the motorway and then enter emission-restricted urban areas. The hydrogen technology developed

by Stellantis and implemented in our Peugeot e-Expert Hydrogen makes such uses possible.”

The new model is built on the production lines of the Stellantis competence centre dedicated to hydrogen technology. It is not currently on sale in the UK.

READ MORE https://tinyurl.com/2p8944ua

Following a lacklustre performance in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the van market has bounced back strongly, with new van registrations in the UK growing by more than a fifth (21.4 per cent) in 2021, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

For many businesses operating van fleets, transitioning to zero tailpipe emissions will be achieved through adoption of battery electric powertrains. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are the most advanced zero tailpipe emission technology currently on the market, with many van models now on the market. In fact, their uptake has more than doubled in 2021, although zero emission vans still only represent a 3.6 per cent share of the market; currently, BEVs account for one in nine car registrations as opposed to one in 28 in the vans market.

With the sale of new diesel and petrol vans scheduled to be phased out in under eight years’ time – new hybrid vehicles will still be available until 2035 – Logistics UK is urging operators of van fleets looking to replace their vehicles in the coming months to give serious consideration to the zero-emission vans available on the market currently and to develop their knowledge on what infrastructure is required to facilitate the move to zero emission van fleets.

Heavy goods vehicles For users of HGVs, the picture is more undefined. For lighter HGVs that

travel shorter distances, the right solution may be battery electric, with some vehicles being developed already. For larger, long-haul HGVs and those that carry heavy loads, the solution is yet to be determined, with battery electric, electric road systems and hydrogen solutions are all being explored. To help lower their emissions in the short-term, operators are continuing to explore and invest in low carbon fuels, such as biomethane.

Logistics UK is encouraging its members to decarbonise their operations – both in the vehicles they use and the supporting infrastructure – as quickly and as effectively as possible as through its Route to Net Zero commitment.

Several of Logistics UK’s members – including Scottish Water, John Lewis Partnership, John Raymond Transport Ltd, UPS, DHL Supply Chain, Royal Borough of Greenwich and Howard Tenens Logistics Ltd – have signed up to the commitment and are beginning their work to inspire and educate others on their decarbonisation journeys.

While there are many steps businesses can take now to decarbonise their operations, government support and manufacturer innovation is essential. The government has committed to spending £183 million on transport decarbonisation, including trials and rollouts of hydrogen technologies for buses, HGV, shipping and aviation. Up to Logistic s £20 million has already been UK is u allocated to design trials r g i n g the gov for both electric road to prov ernment systems and hydrogen long haul HGVs and to on its p ide certainty referred run a battery electric to deca r o u trial to establish the t e feasibility, deliverability, for HGVrbonisation s by costs and benefits of 2020s mideach technology.

While industry awaits the results of the trials,

Infrastructure concerns All these future fuel solutions will require substantial infrastructure investment and energy capacity. While the estimated amount of infrastructure needed to support zero tailpipe emission vehicles varies, the challenge must not be underestimated.

Midlands Connect has estimated that in the Midlands alone, the cost to install the recharging and refuelling infrastructure required by the freight industry by 2040 could be as high as £800 million.

The UK government has committed to all of the nation’s electricity coming from renewable sources by 2035, a move that is vital to supporting zero emission operations.

And there are other issues to consider too: for example, operators have expressed concern over how to manage batteries sustainably at the end of their useful life in vehicles. Clear information about how to reuse, recycle and dispose of electric vehicle batteries must be provided as operators consider which vehicles and technologies to adopt.

While the road to net zero emissions is proving to be challenging and complex, the determination we are seeing from both the logistics industry and the government is encouraging and will be instrumental in making this a reality. With both fractions working together – and on board fully with the decarbonisation targets – at Logistics UK we are confident road transport will be transformed in the coming years.

Written by Michelle Gardner, Head of Public Policy at Logistics UK

As the logistics industry powers towards its goal of net zero emissions by 2050 – and more specifically, the phase-out of the sale of new diesel and petrol vans in the next eight years – 2022 is set to be a transformative 12 months for the decarbonisation of road transport. Michelle Gardner from Logistics UK highlights the recent progress made and looks ahead to what is in store

Transport Decarbonisation

What lies ahead for road transport decarbonisation?

uncertainty over feasible options for zero emission HGVs remain. Logistics UK is urging the government to provide certainty on its preferred route to decarbonisation for these vehicles by mid-2020s to make the 2050 net zero deadline possible.

The voice of the logistics industry Logistics UK is one of the UK’s leading business groups, representing logistics businesses which are vital to keeping the UK trading, and more than seven million people directly employed in the making, selling and moving of goods. With COVID-19, Brexit, new technology and other disruptive forces driving change in the way goods move across borders and through the supply chain, logistics has never been more important to UK plc. Logistics UK supports, shapes and stands up for safe and efficient logistics, and is the only business group which represents the whole industry, with members from the road, rail, sea and air industries, as well as the buyers of freight services such as retailers and manufacturers whose businesses depend on the efficient movement of goods.

For more information on Logistics UK’s decarbonisation work, and to sign up to the Route to Net Zero pledge as a Logistics UK member, please complete the application form, available to download on the following page: logistics.org.uk/environment/netzero L FURTHER INFORMATION www.logistics.org.uk

January 2022 | COMMERCIAL GREENFLEET

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Retrofit Technology

The alternative solution for CAZ compliance Fleet operators are under increasing pressure to comply with air quality and greenhouse gas emissions regulations set at national, local or even company level. Fortunately, as GreenFleet readers know, there’s a wide and growing range of electric vehicles available to car and van fleet operators that, with zero tailpipe emission and renewable electricity, meet both objectives immediately. This, of course, is ideal when growing your fleet or replacing vehicles, but not every car, van or bus is ‘worn out’ and larger van, and truck operators also have few electric choices. So addressing pollution caused by existing vehicles is an essential step towards achieving cleaner air and net zero greenhouse gas emissions.

We’ve often highlighted the role of renewable fuel options such as biomethane and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) in achieving net GHG reductions (and future GreenFleet focus events and articles will cover more on this) but the clean air imperative is particularly pressing now as we return to pre-pandemic (or worse) levels of transport on our roads after a period of significantly lower fleet renewal.

Written by Andy Eastlake, Managing Director, Zemo Partnership

There’s no doubt that the freight and bus sectors will come under increasing pressure to move to zero emission solutions, but where electric or other options are not yet available, approved retrofit technology is a viable option now, writes Andy Eastlake, managing director of Zemo Partnership The standards are all consistent but, there Operating in clean air zones are differences, however, from zone-to-zone, For both public and private operators in terms of which vehicles are charged. This of larger, heavier vehicles with longer is the decision of the local implementing range requirements and/or operations authority and can depend on where they in Clean Air Zones there are relatively see the source and scale of the problem, few economic options to achieve zero what they can control and the amount of emissions and these vehicles can be time their modelling predicts it will take expensive to replace (and often have longer to achieve compliance with regulations. replacement cycles) creating a challenge To tackle this challenge for operators, Zemo for their operators in certain situations.

Partnership and Energy Saving Trust developed To operate in Clean Air Zones introduced (or the Clean Vehicle Retrofit Accreditation to be introduced) across the UK, all petrol Scheme (CVRAS). Introduced in vehicles need to be accredited 2019 the initiative now has 24 to Euro 4 levels while, for The accredited retrofit systems diesels, Euro 6/VI is the CVRAS listed on the CVRAS-Register. even more challenging The scheme includes a requirement. This scheme i certification process to applies to all CAZs, s recogn approve technologies the London Ultra i s e d by auth that can be retrofitted Low Emission Zone to (typically) diesel (ULEZ) and Low respons orities vehicles to reduce Emission Zones Clean A ible for nitrogen oxides (NOx) (LEZs) in Scotland. i Emissior and Low and particulate (PM) n Zone emissions and achieve Euro s 6 / VI equivalent standards. E

An ADL E400 undergoing testing following Repower with a Cummins Euro VI Phase C 6.7 litre engine by Millbrook Special Vehicles

January 2022 | COMMERCIAL GREENFLEET

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Retrofit Technology

Addressing pollution caused by existing vehicles is an essential step towards achieving cleaner air and net zero greenhouse gas emissions  The scheme currently approves solutions for black taxis, some vans, trucks, buses and refuse collection vehicles. Future work is looking in more detail at the options for repowering vehicles with electric drivetrains and batteries, but the vast bulk of retrofits to date (over 8000) are selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems, the same technology as fitted to every new Euro 6/VI diesel road vehicle, with re-power and conversion to LPG available for black taxis and a handful of re-powers with a new Euro VI engine.

The CVRAS scheme is recognised by authorities responsible for Clean Air Zones in England and Wales plus London’s ULEZ and Scotland’s LEZs. It provides the only approved retrofit solutions which allow free access to these zones automatically by ensuring the vehicle is registered in the national CAZ checker database.

Certification The CVRAS process certifies the performance of the systems in a similar way to the certification of new vehicles, but it also includes an ongoing requirement (and monitoring system) to ensure vehicles fitted with these systems on-board continue to cut emissions of nitrogen oxide by 80 per cent or more in real world operation.

A major activity recently for Zemo and EST has been to validate this by in-service monitoring using a combination of specialist Portable Emission Measurement Systems (PEMS) and the on-board telematics installed as part of the retrofit system.

Companies including HJS, Eminox, Proventia, Driveline and Cybrand are the primary providers of exhaust retrofit solutions listed on the CVRAS

Register. Solutions are available for a wide range of heavy goods vehicles and buses.

Cummins and Millbrook offer accredited Euro VI engine re-power options for several buses and some trucks, while Magtec has an electric re-power service for double and single-deck buses, a selection of HGVs and refuse collection vehicles.

VRS, meanwhile, has completed 400 repower and LPG conversions of black cabs.

The power of telematics Zemo Partnership and Energy Saving Trust continue to develop the CVRAS processes.

Early results from in-service monitoring show how important it is to ensure that system are maintained and supported to deliver their emission savings potential and also to identify opportunities to further improve the systems themselves. It also helps to show how vehicle operations can be managed to gain even greater benefits. Key learnings have been to show the power of on board telematics to give essential insights into what vehicles are doing and the challenge of ‘managing’ and interpreting all the potential data available from these information systems.

There are still a modest but slowly growing number of accredited retrofit systems that can achieve the Euro VI equivalence required available to operators. Adding to the range available means running more approval tests.

With costs ranging from £50k to £150k to develop, test and certify a retrofit DPF or SCR system, a potential supplier needs the security of knowing that customers exist for the product. Operators who may be interested in retrofit solutions for their vehicles are

advised to let potential suppliers know their requirements. Energy Saving Trust, with Zemo Partnership support, is working with local authorities and operators to identify opportunities for pooling demand and generating the volumes needed to encourage development of new applications where there may be sufficient potential uptake.

Where zero emission (or Euro 6/VI compliant) products are available, bringing forward replacement cycles may be the best solution in a growing number of circumstances as more and more vehicles serving a wider range of uses come on to the market. However, with increasing cost pressures, replacing vehicles can often be a challenge so knowing how to make the most of the existing fleet is equally important.

Technologies on the market To support the CVRAS scheme, Zemo Partnership has updated the Clean Vehicle Retrofit Technology Guide which explains the retrofit technologies on the market and their application in different vehicle segments, with supporting vehicle operator case studies, an outline of how they are accredited as well as the UK air quality policy framework which is driving the uptake of retrofit solutions.

There’s no doubt that the freight and bus sectors will come under increasing pressure to move to zero emission solutions but where electric or other options are not yet available, Euro VI emissions-level retrofit solutions combined with powerful telematics monitoring, can provide local authorities and private operators with a viable option for continuing operations in the cleanest and most efficient way where vehicle replacement is not an option and other solutions are not yet viable. L FURTHER INFORMATION www.zemo.org.uk CVRAS website: www.energysavingtrust. org.uk/listing/cvras-approved-suppliers/

January 2022 | COMMERCIAL GREENFLEET

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HELLO, GREEN TRAVEL Electric Cargo Bikes are changing the way we travel.

Not only do they create zero emissions, are efficient and have low running cost, but they’re also great fun

Last Mile Logistics

Faced with mounting challenges on urban congestion, cost pressures and environmental concerns, how should businesses adapt their delivery models to meet rocketing e-commerce order volumes?

E-commerce has grown massively, exacerbated by the pandemic and the closure of unessential retail in 2020. Customers increasingly value the convenience, assurance, immediacy, pricing and safety of ordering online.

The performance of many home delivery operations during the COVID crisis has been truly impressive, ramping up capacity at break-neck speed, running continuously at peak levels, or for some new entrants being truly creative with “emergency models”.

However, the traditional ‘last mile’ delivery model – from distribution centre to home addresses, collection points, ‘click and collect’ stores, locker systems and the like – is under huge pressure to serve more customers and greater volumes, and many existing approaches are simply not sustainable in economic, environmental and social terms.

Currently, last mile delivery using ICE vehicles generates significant CO2 and noxious emissions, and raises many other environmental and social problems, including noise, health issues and congestion – particularly in dense urban areas. With increasingly stringent emissions regulations and planned urban area vehicle restrictions, there is now an urgent need to create a ‘sustainability plan’ for the fast-expanding fleet of vans that is rapidly replacing the old regime of large trucks delivering to stores.

And that’s only the vehicle side of final mile, the green agenda extends much wider

Louisa Hosegood, Digital and Strategy Director at Bis Henderson Consulting

Delivering on the ‘last mile’ challenge means that many delivery trips operate ‘on demand’ and at well below capacity. For omni-channel retailers the switch in emphasis to online sales fundamentally challenges the cost structure of the business, requiring the Urban warehousing challenge challenges of ‘final mile’ to be addressed in a The expansion of e-commerce has also placed more holistic way in order to rebalance costs. great demands on physical space, whether it Of course, any comment on ‘last mile’ be fulfilment centres or sorting, consolidation wouldn’t be complete without and delivery hubs, and this has mentioning Amazon. Welcome become a contentious issue. As or not, Amazon’s dominance consumers demand ever faster Last of e-commerce has deliveries, more localised m almost single-handedly fulfilment models are delivery ile upgraded the required. Yet these same u s i n g vehicles ICE expectations of every consumers, as residents, signific generates online shopper. This oppose plans for a has placed substantial industrial development noxious nt CO2 and pressure on 3PLs, in conurbations, as e m i s sions, and rai their delivery partners, seen by the rejection ses oth and the e-commerce of Ocado’s fulfilment e p r o b lems r retailers they serve. On centre expansion in the positive side “The Islington. Many logistics Amazon Effect” has helped property experts suggest many retailers realise how that local government bodies are critical final mile is to their success. being slow to realise the mounting urban An additional factor, as yet barely addressed, warehousing challenge heading their way. is the need in an e-commerce economy for pickWhat’s more, current models are economically ups as well as deliveries – not just of returns, moribund. Consumers expect ‘free’ delivery, but also of consignments from a growing array but e-commerce is hungry for resources – of micro-businesses and home workers. The warehousing, vehicles, order pickers and drivers announcement by Royal Mail that ‘posties’ – which have to be paid for and, as in the case will also pick up pre-paid packages is an of warehousing and labour, are in short supply. indicator as to how the market is evolving. E Meanwhile, the push for speed of deliveries with the conscious consumer now expecting more in terms of packaging and choices over how and when their parcels are delivered.

January 2022 | COMMERCIAL GREENFLEET

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Physical space The network of physical space behind final mile is often forgotten in the race to find cheaper, faster wheels to deliver the parcels.

IT systems will further redefine route planning and scheduling, optimising operations in real-time around criteria of time, mileage and emissions Short leadtimes necessitate close proximity to customers, but finding local warehouse space for sorting and consolidating consignments for last mile deliveries is difficult – even harder than sourcing larger fulfilment facilities. This is where creativity will need to be at its best.

There is considerable scope for automation and IT systems, and simple changes in working practices, to improve the use of resources – labour, space, and energy, in particular.

As high street footfall diminishes, some stores may become redundant, others may be too large and have “baggy space”, whilst in some in-store order picking may no longer present the same degree of conflict with the ‘shopper-in-person’. In the future, Last mile is likely to involve parcels picked from a variety of locations – from big distribution centres, to shops or former shop premises converted to ‘dark stores’. And that’s even before we consider the concept of urban logistics centres.

The next significant trend, especially for fashion and general merchandise, is inter-retailer collaboration on deliveries, principally to drive down parcel costs, but also to offer consumers a single, timely delivery instead of three or four.

Greater collaboration is the route to creating a more comprehensive urban logistics model. With the right foresight and local authority support, we could see schemes like those popular in Japan, South Korea and Singapore where a multi-storey warehouse with vehicle access at all levels is sited on the periphery of a major conurbation.

These facilities could push the boundaries of multi-use to maximise efficient operations by housing a variety of interconnected local area services from ecommerce deliveries, C&C point, shop replenishment or top up, supplier cross dock, inter-store stock rebalancing, returns and collections from customers and returns, and all whilst running

Last Mile Logistics

 Solutions at every scale To create an economically and environmentally intelligent approach to fulfilment, capable of meeting the needs of consumers, residents and companies, many partial solutions for individual firms are available and more are in development. Let’s consider some key elements of future ‘last mile’ solutions.

An obvious starting point is vehicles.

With advances in engineering and creative design, options for delivery vehicles are changing – for example carbon fibre bodies like those being adopted by AO and Asda are much lighter, reducing emissions and increasing payload capacities.

Greener fuel options are gaining traction, such as electric and fuel cell technology, and pedal power through cargo bikes, as well as pedestrians may also be a part of the mix. There may be autonomous delivery ‘robots’, as being trialled in Milton Keynes, and, less probably, drones.

Transport arrangements too will vary. As the market matures it will become evident that not all deliveries need to be same-day and on-demand, allowing for some degree of rationalisation and consolidation. On the other hand, increasingly sophisticated, and affordable, IT systems will further redefine route planning and scheduling, optimising operations in real-time around criteria of time, mileage, emissions or a combination thereof.

Indeed, many of the solutions for last mile delivery will be data driven, and much of the required data already exists or could readily be made available. Dynamic systems can balance options, offering consumers greater visibility and maximum flexibility, such as changing destination at short notice, with greater operational efficiencies of reducing failed or re-deliveries. Systems will provide a platform for greater collaboration by enabling easier consolidation of deliveries from disparate sources for a single destination, creating much needed operational efficiency and, crucially, adding another layer to the coveted customer service proposition.

a local green fuel multi-vehicle fleet.

This approach works well with a collaborating consortium of up to eight or ten manufacturers or retailers. The environmental and economic benefits of wider collaboration could be considerable, but success depends on a supportive approach from local transport and planning authorities, as is being offered by the Mayor of London and Transport for London.

In the current economic climate, substantial public investment in such comprehensive schemes is unlikely. But there is much that can be achieved by individual businesses and through close collaboration with other organisations and local authorities. Importantly, not every initiative requires significant new money: much can be achieved through intelligent decisions in the normal renewal cycle, and by repurposing existing assets.

Whether you are contemplating something on this scale, or a more modest first move, Bis Henderson can assist you in looking at the ‘last mile’ in the context of your overall logistics solutions, your omni-channel strategies, and the way your physical estate and its utilisation might change. We can advise on designing, procuring and implementing technologies, materials handling and automation, and IT, that will create capacity, drive process improvement and effectiveness, and improve service levels in ‘last mile’ operations.

We can also help you benchmark against what your peers are doing, and facilitate collaborations where these make sense.

Critically, we can show you how to make environmentally, socially and economically sustainable ‘last mile’ operations a part of your brand. L FURTHER INFORMATION www.bis-hendersonconsulting.com

January 2022 | COMMERCIAL GREENFLEET

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Automobile Association Insurance Services Limited is an insurance intermediary authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered office: Fanum House, Basing View, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 4EA. England and Wales.

Company registration number 2414212.