STEF-TFE, partner of the Electric Class of the Andros Trophy

On December 5 and 6 in Val Thorens (Savoie), STEF-TFE entered the first 100% electric ice race : a world first launched on the initiative of the Andros Trophy organizers, in partnership with the French automobile sport association FFSA. Within this partnership, Olivier Pernaut, an Andros Trophy competitor since 2004, will drive an electric racing car dressed in STEF-TFE colors and logo.

“We are eagerly awaiting the outcome of this event, as it is not only a sport even but also an exercise in technological innovation. Electric cars are very much in the news, but the technology has never been submitted to endurance power testing under extreme conditions. The electric Series of the 21st Andros Trophy offer a unique opportunity to measure how new generations of electrical batteries deliver power and range under cold temperatures”, Jean-Charles Fromage, STEF-TFE’s Chief operating officer said.

Electricity accounts for 30% of STEF-TFE’s total energy consumption

Unlike dry good hauliers and logisticians, food temperature-controlled logistics need a lot of electricity. STEF-TFE’s hubs and platforms for the cold supply chain (-25°C for frozen goods, and +2 to +4° C for fresh food) use as much electricity as the entire population of a city like Lyon (500,000 people), i.e. 1,2 million kw/h per day.

STEF-TFE, the ideal candidate to test electrical power under extreme conditions

The extreme temperatures encountered during the Andros Trophy will show the true industrial potential of electrical power for power solutions suited for the haulage of goods and for handling operations on refrigerated platforms. “The demands of this sport event in terms of reliability and hardiness are very close to what cold logisticians need. The Andross Trophy is therefore both an event for passionate characters and a technical laboratory which should enable us to develop with our partners electric solutions best suited for our trucks and refrigerated platforms”, Jean-Charles Fromage said. “Every initiative already launched and every electric project we are presently working on are driven by our desire to optimize our electricity consumption and to use this energy for new tasks”.

STEF-TFE is working on six eco-electric projets :

1)    Electric trucks for urban deliveries: during the first semester of 2010, we will test electricity powered vehicles with nitrogen-refrigerated trailer boxes

2)    The “electric tippling” of refrigerated trucks: with “electric tippling”, electricity is used to power the trucks’ cold-generation units power-units when they are waiting to load or unload along bays or in the platforms parking lots. This technique which is gradually introduced on every STEF-TFE transport site keeps the refrigerated box at a constant cold temperature while reducing noise nuisances since the diesel engine can then be turned off. 

3)    Experiences on thermic energy storage : STEF-TFE is considering a first experience with this technique in 2010. The energy stored at – 10° C during hours when electricity is abundant and cheap, is released at other times of the day to help keep a warehouse cold.

4)    HEQ (High Environmental Quality) warehouses: In 2009, STEF-TFE built in Vire (Normandy) a 23,000 square meter refrigerated platform following HEQ guidelines. The site features heat and cold recovery, low temperature heating and low-consumption lighting. It sets new standards for energy, water and waste management. This eco-engineered site will in the future inspire every new one built by STEF-TFE.

5)    Program “J’€co” : This eco-behavioural program has already led to a 5% decrease in energy consumption on the group’s French sites in 2009.

6)    Sola energy generation centers : TFE’s site in Gap was the group’s first one inaugurated in November 2009. Between 2010 and 2012, solar panels will be installed on 12 other sites throughout Europe.

About the Andross Trophy – the competition calendar

December                               
Saturday 5 / Sunday 6 : Val Thorens                   
Saturday 12 / Sunday 13  : Grandvalira / Andora           
Friday 18 / Saturday 19 : Alpe d’Huez                   
                                   
January
Friday 8 / Saturday 9 : Isola 2000
Friday 15 / Saturday 16 : Lans en Vercors
Saturday 23 / Sunday 24 : Saint Die
Friday 29 / Saturday 30 : Super Besse (final)

About STEF-TFE
Totally focused on the cold market business, STEF-TFE is the European leader for temperature-controlled logistics. Today, STEF-TFE offers a complete range of solutions in transport, logistics and information systems for any food product, including the most temperature-sensitive. Its 220 site network and 13,000 employees give STEF-TFE the ability to cover every European country and guarantee a homogeneous traceability under the strictest of European standards. STEF-TFE’s sales totalled €2,081 million in 2008.

About Olivier PERNAUT / www.pernaut.com
Olivier Pernaut has competed in the Andross Trophy every year since 2004.:
2009 : 3d as an independent
2008 : 1st in the “Promotion” (small teams) class
2004 : 1st in the “Promotion” class

Press contact: Florence  RIMBERT-RICOU
Tel: 01 40 74 29 02 – florence.rimbert@stef-tfe.com
93, boulevard Malesherbes – 75008 Paris