Carter Express Helps Nestlé Go Green With EV Yard Tractors
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Two electric trucks from Carter Express recently went into operation at Nestlé’s production plant in Indiana thanks to a state grant for $600,000 covering most of the green supply chain project.
“Carter sought the grant to advance green initiatives in alignment with our parent company’s and customer’s objectives while maintaining economic viability,” explained Jessica Paugh Warnke, Carter Express president & CEO. The Indiana-based company is a unit of Logisteed of Japan.
Nestlé, the Swiss food and beverage giant, has been working closely with Carter Express to seek ways to decarbonize the supply chain since Nestlé set a goal in 2019 to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
By operating the two electric trucks exclusively at the beverage production plant, Carter Express and Nestlé will work toward sustainability objectives and support lower diesel emissions at Nestlé’s beverage production facility in Anderson, Ind.
Carter Express driver Shawn Burris at the wheel of a yard tractor. (Carter Express)
Over the lifespan of these electric trucks, which went into service Sept. 5, about 12,000 tons of carbon emissions will be avoided, according to Carter Express.
Indiana’s Department of Environmental Management awarded a DieselWise grant for Carter Express to buy the pair of electric trucks and associated charging infrastructure by funding 75% of the project. Carter provided the remaining 25%. The DieselWise grants, which began over 20 years ago, are awarded to state projects that lower tailpipe emissions from diesel-powered vehicles.
In September, IDEM announced it partnered with several groups including nonprofit Drive Clean Indiana and the Indiana Utility Group Consortium to introduce a statewide electric vehicle and charging initiative called GOEVIN (an acronym for GO Electric Vehicle INdiana). The focus of the initiative is to accelerate EV adoption throughout the state.
Warnke
The Anderson beverage factory, which employs more than 800 people, is Nestlé’s largest U.S. facility and serves as a distribution center. Carter Express plays a crucial role as a shipping partner in Nestlé’s transportation operations.
“The electric trucks are for on-site spotting,” Warnke said. “These trucks are for our yard management operation. Before these trucks, we were operating four yard tractors 24/7 on their yard. We will still be operating four trucks but will have a fifth, diesel-powered truck, as backup when the units need to charge.”
Carter Express has placed “two fast off-board charging 70kW 480VAC charging units” onsite near the work area at Nestlé, said Warnke. “This is a 24/7 operation but leveraging the fast chargers with ‘opportunity charging’ during driver breaks will be used to attempt to keep the trucks running around the clock.”
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