A new route to low carbon

Our approach…

As home shopping at ASDA moves into its tenth year, our delivery service is more popular than ever. That’s why we’ve been working to make our delivery vans as green as they can be.

After collaborating with a range of partners around the country, we are proud to announce our latest innovation on the road to reducing our carbon emissions – the electric home delivery van.

Our people…

Harry Harrison has been developing new transport solutions since the early days of home delivery at ASDA – and is part of the team behind the vehicle.

‘It was 2000 and I was watching Tomorrow’s World on the BBC’ Harry recalls. ‘My ears pricked up when they showed a feature on a completely electric mode of transport called the Minitram System – a cross between a tram and a bus.’

Always on the look out for a way to improve efficiency at ASDA, Harry contacted the people behind the concept – Transport Design International (TDI).

‘About eight years ago, we began moving into a new niche – environmentally friendly transport,’ explains TDI’s Managing Director, Martin Pemberton. ‘It was around this time that Harry came to us with the challenge of designing a refrigerated vehicle which was 100% free of emissions. We were delighted to help.’

The concepts were shown to the people responsible for ASDA’s diesel–powered delivery trucks, Paneltex, who agreed to produce the vehicle to TDI’s design.

The team was completed by ASDA’s fleet management specialists, VMS. Together they became Zeroed – a group dedicated to realising the idea of a functioning electric delivery fleet. Finally, in April 2008, Zeroed’s electric vehicle made its debut at the Commercial Vehicle Show.

Our future…

‘The van has caused quite a stir because it’s so efficient,’ enthuses Harry Harrison. ‘It uses the latest battery technology, and can be fully charged within six hours: for us, this kind of vehicle is a positive step towards a lower carbon footprint.’

And it’s an enthusiasm Martin Pemberton shares: ‘The team at ASDA are committed to reducing the company’s emissions – and what’s more, they’re in a great position to set an example to other retailers.’

Rigorous trials are planned for central London during 2008, and will hopefully lead to a UK–wide launch before the year is out.