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With the impending introduction of a carbon-constricted economy, one of Australia’s major logistics players Linfox has rolled out a program to slash its carbon footprint up to 15 per cent in two years.
The scheme, called GreenFox, will include measures such as asking drivers to slow down and increasing solar energy use in its warehouse operations.
The company’s group manager, environment and climate change, David McInnes said the decision came to tackle the widely publicised role of transport in climate change, putting “the short-term do-ables” in action.
“Linfox has mapped its own emission profile, with diesel constituting 80 per cent of its emission, followed by electricity at 13 per cent. These are the two main areas we are concentrating on,” Mr McInnes told delegates at the Australian Logistics Council’s Energy and Environment Summit 08.
“We don’t expect that new truck technology will make an appreciable dint in emissions for another decade. We [Australia] are a technology taker. We don’t build our own trucks or manufacture our own fuel.”
Under the new environmental program, the company will seek to optimise use of vehicles and encourage economical driving habits, which is expected to result in a cost-saving of around five per cent.
Mr McInnes said drivers were asked to skip shifting gears, accelerate gradually and utilise the mass of the truck to maintain momentum. The number of its fleet is also to be cut to minimise empty running, along with a reduction in speed.
“It costs more to go faster,” he said.
The company is also considering more innovative energy-saving measures such as the use of airbags between trailers.
“We are doing tests in Germany. By closing the gap between the cabin and trailers, and between trailers, you get a continuous airflow on all sides and thus us less energy,” he said.
“Customers must agree on some of our actions, because they may need to change their own behaviour.”
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