- JJ Foodservice, the national food distribution specialist has 12 sites operating 100+ trucks of various types
- The company wanted to improve the efficiency and carbon efficiency of its fleet
- Jungheinrich’s solution halved the number of batteries used by JJ Foodservice, reducing cost and removing the risk and time involved in changing batteries
- The switch is set to save 1 million+ kgs of CO2 over the life of the contract
- The new trucks are also helping to improve operator visibility and reduce rack/product damage
For 35 years, JJ Foodservice has built a reputation for quality that is trusted by food businesses from sandwich bars to Michelin-starred restaurants. Operating from 12 branches across the UK, it’s still a family business, able to make decisions on its own terms for the benefit of its customers and people. That includes its choice of MHE partner, with JJ Foodservice making the decision to switch to Jungheinrich.
“JJ Foodservice was using a mix of gas and electric trucks,” said Tom Gelderd, Key Accounts Manager, Jungheinrich UK. “Reducing the fleet’s carbon footprint and optimising operational costs were key priorities, but logistics and health and safety were also big drivers of change”.
“The existing fleet of MHE had been powered by 200+ batteries and the previous supplier had not explored battery change systems. The operations team were required to manually change batteries on a roller bed system. This is a common solution in the UK, however on a reach truck, where a battery can weigh the best part of a tonne, this is physically exerting and comes with H&S concerns, fatigue and logistical challenges. There was a clear opportunity to explore other solutions and work with JJ Foodservice to operate more efficiently.”
Kaan Hendekli, Chief Operating Officer at JJ Foodservice was impressed by Jungheinrich’s approach. “They were super-attentive, super-interested. They visited every single branch to identify the specific needs of each site. That level of commitment and personal touch was why we chose Jungheinrich. You care.”
Battery benefits
Jungheinrich supplied 100+ trucks, including counterbalances, pallet movers and reach trucks. Each truck now uses just one battery, which simply plugs in and recharges when drivers take breaks. “This saves time, because there’s no longer a need for battery changeovers,” said Tom. “It also reduces operational costs because they only need half the number of batteries. Space where the battery change roller beds were located has now been made available and JJs have been able to store pallets in some of these areas. And there’s the health and safety aspect that comes from no longer needing to change batteries.”
Replacing the internal combustion engine (ICE) trucks presented, on the face of it, just as big a challenge. Unless JJ Foodservice could feel confident that its counterbalances had the necessary charging windows and charge points, they would need to remain.
Jungheinrich placed a tracker on the ICE trucks to identify charging windows and optimal locations and was able to seamlessly convert to electric without disrupting any operational shift patterns.
Double-deep vision
JJ Foodservice warehouses operate a double-deep racking system that is, two pallet racks placed back-to-back. This increases the storage of each warehouse but requires trucks with extendable forks in order to reach pallets in the rear bays.
At height, this had created real challenges for forklift operators who need to be diligent to avoid racking damage. JJ Foodservice’s trucks already had cameras fitted, but it was clear that, with different lighting levels and racking heights, the trucks needed a site-specific camera fitted to each truck, tailored to each branch’s requirements.
A range of lenses, including a wide-angle lens, now give truck operators the vision they need to reduce rack and product damage at each site.
In addition to improved visibility, the narrower truck width has given a greater aisle clearance that is helping to protect valuable stock. “80mm doesn’t sound like a lot,” added Thomas, “but it’s made a significant difference in areas such as cold stores.”
Saving 1 million kg of Co2
Carbon reduction was a key factor in JJ Foodservice partnering with Jungheinrich. So how much CO2 has actually been saved?
“We did a TCO (total cost of ownership) assessment comparing JJ Foodservice’s Co2 impact with Jungheinrich and the previous supplier,” explained Tom. “We found that every truck is saving over 1kg of CO2 every week compared with a competitor’s new truck , with total savings over the contract term of 1,027,925kg.
“Choose your partner wisely”
Jungheinrich has now completed a phased introduction of JJ Foodservice’s fleet. Now, the partnership has progressed to racking at JJ Foodservice’s new Wimbledon Branch and Enfield site, and both companies can look back on a successful transformation.
“It’s a massive change to switch service providers,” said Kaan. “Yet the process was managed almost perfectly. You always face some resistance to change, but Jungheinrich made sure that there was a personal touch with our operators, and now they really like lots of the new features such as the cameras.”
“Every organisation needs to change; you can’t stand still. And you need a partner who can support you in doing that. That takes great communication and good advice and that’s what we’ve had from Jungheinrich. To anyone looking at transforming their truck fleet, I would say choose your partner wisely.”
