REFRIGERATED TRAILER:

The refrigerated transport sector, for a great part, makes up the transportation industry. Refrigerated trailers are powered by a diesel generator, which converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. The refrigerated trailers can also be powered with electricity from the grid. Nomad Power is a company that places electricity connections at parking lots near the highways. Powering the refrigerated trailer with electricity is more cost efficient than using a diesel generator as power source. Drivers can power their trailer with electricity when they are on a break. Since drivers are permitted by law to drive only 9 hours per day, the difference could become quite significant. This report makes a comparison between these two methods of cooling in order to estimate the difference in costs. The report is divided in six sub questions that investigate different factors that affect the cost. Firstly, the costs of cooling a trailer are discussed, which consist of the operating , maintenance and switching cost. When switching to electricity a cost reduction of 39% per operating hour is realized. A cost reduction in maintenance of 40% is realized when switching to electricity, whereas the cost of switching are only 80 euro’s. Secondly, the effect of the inside temperature has on the cost is investigated. The inside temperature affects the consumption of power strongly. Types of cargo that need a low inside temperature for transportation have a more significant effect on the cost reduction. Thirdly, the effect of the outside temperature on the consumption of power is discussed. The outside temperature has an effect on the consumption of power; when the outside temperature is low the consumption of power also decreases. Fourthly, the amount of time that a loaded truck stands still near the highways (stop rate) is investigated by interviewing multiple transporters. Three different stop rate clusters are identified: short, medium and long transportation distances. The short transportation distances have an average stop rate of 0%, the medium transportation distances have an average stop rate of 10% and the long transportation distances have an average stop rate of 44%. As fifth, the effect that prices have in different west-European countries on the cost is investigated. This effect is estimated by calculating the break-even point and the potential benefit in five years for all west-European countries. Of all investigated European countries The Netherlands have the lowest break-even point of 39,93 operating hours and the cost-benefit in five years for long distances is €21.684 and short distances is €4.866, followed by The United Kingdom, Belgium, Italy, Germany and Spain. At last it is investigated if the cost reduction has a significant impact on the total cost of transportation. Multiple transport companies were interviewed and ask how large the share of the cost of energy are in comparison with the total cost of transportation for all types of cargo. It was founded that when the inside temperature increases, the percentage of total costs decreases in value. A cost reduction of 0,68% on the total cost of transportation for long transportation distances is created when using electricity from the grid.