The latest trials on yellow plant by resource management company Veolia have demonstrated the potential to make significant carbon savings of 58% across its fleet of over 660 site-based machines. By working with vehicle manufacturers to optimise vehicle settings, training operators to maximise productivity, and lowering maintenance requirements through better operating regimes, the company is advancing the transition to net zero.
The programme shows the potential of lowering the carbon footprint of plant used in the company’s recycling, waste, construction and demolition operations.
The six-month trial has focused on making critical changes in how vehicles are used and set up for tasks, ensuring they are optimised, and implementing wide-ranging training programmes to enable vehicle drivers to limit fuel use and vehicle wear. Results of the changes were logged through accurate telemetry monitoring across a wide range of yellow plant, including articulated haul trucks, wheel loaders, tracked vehicles, dozers, and landfill compactors.
At Veolia’s leading testing site in Rainham, the total time vehicles spent idling has been reduced by 50%, saving an estimated 12,000 litres of fuel annually. Other reductions in fuel burning rates are calculated to save a further 38,000 litres of fuel a year, and together, these can save an estimated 133,000kg of carbon emissions on this site alone.
To further cut CO2 emissions from the manufacture of spare parts and maintenance, the company has developed new operating regimes based on conditions for operating on-site, equipment configuration, job set-up, vehicle optimisation, payload, and correct loading techniques. In combination, these measures make a significant difference to maintenance requirements and vehicle operating life and improve these assets’ economics.
Following the success of this trial, Veolia will introduce the optimisation programme across the entire fleet of site machines, used on 83 sites, to increase CO2 savings.
Gary Clark- Veolia Fleet Director UK&I, said: ‘The unprecedented carbon savings we have achieved during this trial have actively demonstrated how the industry can accelerate the transition to the net zero targets and meet our aim of ecological transformation.
‘Through the hard work and engagement of our teams at all levels, supported by vehicle manufacturers, our optimisation programme has exceeded its aims. Together this has given us a greater understanding of the challenges and can now be extended across all of our sites to make major cuts in carbon emissions.”
‘In becoming the benchmark company for ecological transformation, Veolia is committed to tackling climate change, resource depletion, biodiversity collapse, and pollution. By expanding the use of existing and new innovative solutions, the company is accelerating the process to radically change production and consumption patterns and placing ecology at the heart of every process. This includes maximising the value of resources to effectively ensure a secure energy supply, and easing resource scarcity challenges.
