Scania and Shoprite driving sustainability
AS the world moves ever faster towards fewer emissions, Scania South Africa have thrown their hat into the ring in a joint partnership with the Shoprite Group, with the acquisition of more than 100 New Generation trucks powered by Euro 5 engines.
Extensive demonstrations and road testing were conducted on the Euro 5 vehicles before the handover.
A 10 percent fuel saving was recorded across most applications. The data from these tests led to Shoprite’s final decision to buy the Euro 5 G450 A6X4 tractors.
“At Scania Southern Africa, we are leading the shift to sustainable transport solutions. Our Euro 5 advanced engine platform offers customers like The Shoprite Group proven 10 percent fuel savings coupled with lower CO2 and NOx emissions,” said Erik Bergvall, Managing Director, Scania Southern Africa.
The partnership with The Shoprite Group has sbeen a five-year journey. “At face value, we are two very different companies, operating in two very different industries but we share a commitment to driving sustainability across our business ecosystems,” explained Bergvall during the handover in Stellenbosch last week.
“Euro 5 compliance was non-negotiable for Shoprite. We are happy that we could prove that our Euro 5 vehicles are an economically viable solution for them, delivering unparalleled fuel efficiencies and better aerodynamics.”
Shoprite’s transport system is extensive with a requirement for optimal performance in order for The Group to maximise cost efficiencies.
“Shoprite values data as much as we do,” says Bergvall. “Data has driven our sustainability journey and allowed us to track, record and analyse our customers’ operational information to ensure we are able to constantly support both their sustainability and financial goals.”
The data is also used to measure Scania’s performance against science-based carbon reduction targets. Scania was the first major heavy commercial manufacturer to commit to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and to achieving the Paris agreement targets of limiting global warming to 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels.
“The good thing about these targets is that they draw a line in the sand for us, creating a clear route to reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” explained Bergvall.
The Shoprite partnership will also see Scania continuing to equip drivers with extensive driver training while tailoring flexible maintenance plans that will maintain peak performance across the Shoprite fleet. On-site servicing by Scania technicians will aid preventative maintenance while decreasing downtime.
To date, Scania has conducted 45 one-month tests using their Euro 5 vehicles with several different clients across varied applications.
In all cases, the Euro 5 unit has been more fuel efficient than the customer’s existing trucks. “There are no compromises for our customers when adopting our sustainable transport solutions, ”concluded Bergvall.
“It’s a good example of us making an improvement, by introducing the Scania Euro 5 trucks into our Shoprite fleet. These trucks are going to help us significantly in terms of our sustainability journey but also really help us significantly on our overall efficiency programme journey we’re also undertaking within the supply chain,” said Andrew Havinga Shoprite Group’s Chief Supply Chain Officer.