After years of continuous growth, the turnover of the medium-sized freight forwarding group IHRO fell in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. "Now our order books are full again, we are back on course for growth and want to expand this year, especially in warehouse logistics," says Kai Ihro, Managing Partner of the family-run freight forwarding group. At the same time, the company, which specializes in jumbo transports, is investing in the environmentally friendly expansion of its own fleet and has ordered 15 natural gas trucks. The first six LNG tractor units have already been in use since February. "Engines powered by liquefied natural gas are quieter than diesel and burn more cleanly, which means they emit less climate-damaging_CO2, among other things," adds Ihro. "We have tested numerous alternative drive variants and have now opted for LNG because it currently appears to be the most environmentally friendly solution for heavy-duty trucks that also enables the driving performance we need."

The LNG trucks have a range of up to 1,250 kilometers on a single tank. "We have also been using trucks that run on compressed natural gas, i.e. CNG, since 2016," explains Ihro. "But with a maximum range of 250 kilometers, we can practically only use them for local transport." IHRO had previously tested alternative fuels such as rapeseed oil or biodiesel based on vegetable oil, and an electric tractor unit has also been in use at the Audi plant in Neckarsulm since 2016. "There are still no practicable trucks with electric motors for long-distance transportation, while gas is a good alternative to diesel." According to Ihro, the use of biogas could also "significantly improve" the environmental balance in future.

Because companies from the automotive industry are among IHRO's main customers, the freight forwarding group's turnover fell by 8% to 37.1 million euros in 2020. "Due to the first lockdown in March, the automotive sector came to an almost complete standstill shortly afterwards," says Ihro. "In April, we had to temporarily shut down 120 trucks. In July, business picked up again noticeably and after the end of the summer vacations, all our trucks were back in operation." IHRO's workforce remained constant at 380 employees. "Despite the significant cutbacks in the spring, we did not lay off a single employee."

The positive trend has continued in the current year. Not only the transport sector, but also the demand for warehouse logistics has increased significantly. "More and more customers want us to provide a combination of transport and warehousing services," says Ihro. "That's why we are urgently looking for new space to expand our storage facilities." The company is preferably looking at its headquarters in Neuenstein (Hohenlohe district) in order to achieve the greatest possible synergies through the proximity of the various company divisions and to avoid unnecessary cross-transports. "Warehouse locations outside Neuenstein mean that we would also have to relocate at least parts of our transport organization."