Load industrial trucks sustainably and energy-efficiently

The topic of energy efficiency is currently on everyone's lips. This is because today's energy policy and the global climate agreement are bringing the careful use of resources and the reduction of electricity consumption more and more into focus - including in intralogistics. In order to transport goods to their destination as energy-efficiently and reliably as possible, many companies are already relying on electrically powered industrial trucks.

Compared to forklifts with combustion engines, these are not only much quieter and more environmentally friendly, but can also reduce operating costs in the long term. The right charging technology plays a decisive role in the economical operation of these electric helpers. This was also the case for consumer electronics manufacturer Vestel, which set out in 2013 to find a more efficient and cost-effective solution for its industrial truck fleet.

Founded in 1984 in Manisa, Turkey, and part of the Zorlu Group since 1994, the company is one of the world's leading OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) and ODMs (Original Design Manufacturers) for household and electrical appliances. The Vestel Group consists of 24 individual companies specializing in manufacturing, software and technology development as well as marketing and sales of various products. Vestel exports televisions, washing machines, refrigerators and LED lighting to a total of 149 countries under various Japanese and European brands. The company has continuously expanded its capacities, export activities and market share and now has numerous locations not only in Turkey but also internationally. One of these is located in Poland, not far from Wroclaw. Here, 330 employees are involved in the production of LCD televisions.

Identifying and effectively utilizing potential savings

Thanks to an LED strip on the charger, the user can immediately see which connected battery is already fully charged and cooled down. This leads to an even utilization of the forklifts and batteries.

The Polish plant also includes a warehouse with an area of 21,000 square meters. To transport all the goods efficiently to their destination, Vestel uses 32 electric industrial trucks - including ten reach trucks, 16 forklift trucks and six pallet trucks. However, charging the various traction batteries and the associated power consumption represented a significant cost factor. In order to reduce operating costs at the plant, Vestel took a closer look at its fleet's charging technology, among other things, and came to the conclusion that there was enormous potential for savings in terms of energy consumption and process efficiency. "In the past, we had huge electricity costs when charging the batteries," recalls Rafal Barcikowski, Warehouse Manager at Vestel. "The charging process was not always satisfactory. The different batteries were often either charged too much or too little." In conventional charging processes, a large proportion of the energy used is converted into heat and is lost unused. This reduces efficiency and therefore consumes an unnecessarily large amount of electricity. It can also lead to the batteries being heavily overcharged. As a result, the expensive lead-acid batteries often reach the end of their useful life early on.

In their search for a way to optimize the charging process, those responsible at Vestel quickly came across Fronius: "We were already familiar with the brand from the trade media," recalls Barcikowski. "We arranged an appointment with an expert from Fronius, who presented the entire range to us in detail and identified potential savings on site."

With the new Selectiva generation of chargers, the technology leader based in Pettenbach, Austria, has developed a solution that ensures a gentle and, above all, cost-saving charging process that significantly increases the service life of the traction batteries. "This new technology and Fronius' experience and expertise convinced us right from the start," says Barcikowski.

Innovative charging technology increases performance and reduces costs

The basis of the new generation of Fronius devices is the innovative Ri charging process. This allows users to charge batteries with different voltages and capacities flexibly - and always with an individual characteristic curve. The devices automatically measure the internal resistance (Ri) of the connected battery, which depends on its age, temperature and condition, among other factors, and adjust the charging curve accordingly. "This means that there is almost no overcharging and the batteries are charged much more gently and economically," explains Mateusz Kaleja, specialist consultant at Fronius.

With an overall efficiency of up to 84 percent, the devices are more efficient than conventional solutions. They also significantly extend the service life of the expensive traction batteries. "Our charging technology therefore significantly reduces the total cost of ownership," explains Kaleja.

Vestel has 25 Selectiva appliances in the 3 kW and 8 kW power classes in use at its Polish plant. The handling of the appliances in particular impressed those responsible from the outset: "All new appliances have an intelligent automatic start-stop function. All our employees have to do is plug the batteries in and out, and the appliance automatically sets the optimum characteristic curve," explains Barcikowski. Another advantage: thanks to an LED strip on the charger, the user can immediately see which connected battery is already fully charged and cooled down. The result is an even utilization of the forklifts and batteries. "This allows us to increase the service life of the batteries in the long term," says Barcikowski happily. "What's more, the chargers work absolutely reliably and without any problems. Operating errors and damage caused by incorrect charging are a thing of the past for us."

By renewing its charging technology, Vestel has been able to significantly reduce the costs of operating its electric industrial trucks. At the same time, this switch represents a further step towards energy efficiency and sustainability. Vestel is also more than satisfied with its collaboration with the Austrian manufacturer: "Right from the start, Fronius impressed us with its solutions and, above all, its technical expertise," summarizes Rafal Barcikowski. "If we had to decide on a new battery charging technology again today, we would always choose Fronius."

vestel-poland.com/enwww.fronius.com/intralogistik