A step at a time towards CO2-neutral intralogistics

Companies are currently being confronted with sharply increasing electricity prices and ever stricter environmental protection requirements. At the same time peak currents represent a big challenge for the infrastructure and the network stability and drive energy consumption, and consequently costs and the CO2 balance, upward. In addition to efficiency and cost effectiveness, sustainability is also becoming an increasingly important subject across all sectors.  

“We are seeing a clear trend that companies want to be more active when it comes to CO2 reduction and decarbonisation, and are looking for feasible, practical solutions. This is precisely what Fronius offers,” explains Patrick Gojer, Business Unit Head Marketing and Sales Perfect Charging. “We are there as a partner to support our customers on the way to a CO2-neutral charging infrastructure. In order to do this, we identify possible potentials for achieving savings in ongoing operation, and create the requirements for the necessary transparency. Our many years of experience both in battery charging technology and in solar energy allow us to offer the customer holistic, intelligent and simultaneously sustainable charging solutions.” Another key advantage is that the entire system comes from a single source, meaning that Fronius is also the only contact for any maintenance and service work and can respond quickly and in a targeted manner.  

Self-generated solar energy for the forklift fleet

The use of renewable energy, and photovoltaic systems in particular, plays a big part on the route towards CO2-neutral intralogistics. Industrial buildings with their large flat roofs are often ideal sites for solar collectors. The energy that they produce can be put to excellent use, for example for the operation of electric forklift trucks. They are responsible for up to a third of total energy consumption in many companies. “The self-generated solar energy ensures greater independence from the public grid, reduces both energy costs and CO2 emissions and is therefore an important step towards greater sustainability,” says Gojer.  

Fronius offers the most progressive technology available on the market for charging traction batteries for electric forklift trucks with the Selectiva charger range. These can be optimally combined with the Fronius Solar Energy business segment, which specialises in the design and implementation of tailor-made photovoltaic systems including inverters. The Fronius networking solution Charge & Connect ensures the necessary transparency and controllability. With the intelligent complete system, users can considerably increase their amount of renewable energy and ideally adjust the power requirement of the forklift fleet to the amount of energy available. Expensive load spikes can be better controlled or entirely avoided, depending on the capacity utilisation of the PV system.