Fuelling a greener future

A major manufacturer and distributor of UPVC building products, Eurocell is continuously looking to enhance the sustainability credentials of its daily operations. Winners of a prestigious national recycling award, the company manufactures and supplies construction products such as conservatory, doors and windows. It also owns Eurocell Recycle (formerly known as Merritt Plastics) which specialises in recycling these products, turning them back into brand new extruded plastic products, forming a full closed-loop product lifecycle from one end to the other.

To further enhance its performance in sustainable operations, the management team at Eurocell decided to look at the fuel source for its fleet of forklift trucks (FLTs) operating across the company’s UK manufacturing sites. 

Five of its sites, including its recycling plant in Derbyshire, use LPG FLTs to handle materials as part of their manufacturing and recycling processes.  Keen to explore more sustainable options for its fleet, the company entered discussions with Calor – the only UK LPG supplier that currently offers BioLPG.

As a renewable fuel source, BioLPG is created from a blend of waste, residues, and sustainably sourced materials.  The fuel is chemically identical to LPG, compatible with all LPG powered fork lift trucks without compromising their performance, and is proven to be just as energy efficient. Furthermore, it can lower users’ carbon emissions by 20-30% compared to conventional LPG¹, based on an allocation of 40% BioLPG and 60% conventional LPG.

Adopting BioLPG has been the ideal solution to further support Eurocell’s green objectives, as Adam Morey, Procurement Manager for the company explains: “In our discussions with Calor, it was clear that choosing their Green Energy Plan, which provides a blend of 40% renewable BioLPG and 60% conventional LPG for our FLT fleet, would help drive our sustainability agenda and deliver clear benefits in a number of areas.  Apart from replacing the existing bulk tanks, we didn’t need to overhaul our storage or energy infrastructure. There was no extra cost involved to go onto the green tariff, nor compromises to the performance of our trucks.”

Easy switch

The switching of fuel supply for a busy manufacturer such as Eurocell can be an obvious concern as they could not afford to have site production affected.  However, with the ability to store BioLPG within an existing LPG infrastructure, Calor was able to project manage the continuity of supply so all Eurocell’s sites remained operational.

At some locations, this included the installation of temporary gas supplies whilst the project team decommissioned legacy equipment that was no longer needed. Indeed, the entire storage infrastructure, including five bulk tanks and 100-cylinder outlets, that holds a combined total of 350 tonnes of gas, was installed and operational without any disruption to Eurocell’s operations.

The decision to specify BioLPG is also another significant positive factor in support of Eurocell’s overall environmental strategy. By choosing Calor to supply this green gas for their forklift truck fleet, the company is now able to obtain Green Gas Certificates and Green Gas credits², administered by the Green Gas Certification Scheme, as a widely accepted guarantee that the amount of BioLPG consumed has been correctly calculated. This enables the business to be truly transparent when it comes to reporting important ESG (environmental, social and governance) data and information concerning business activity.

Flexible supply

Up and running for over a year, the partnership between the two companies is going from strength to strength.  One of the key components of the success has been Calor’s ability to run a flexible delivery schedule during the first few weeks, before a usage pattern became apparent in the data. With in-built auto ordering technology helping to inform deliveries to keep bulk tanks full, most sites are now on a regular Auto top-up³ rota, with one site receiving twice weekly deliveries to cater for a smaller tank.  In addition to the manufacturing sites that contain the bulk storage tanks, Calor now also supplies cylinders to 100 of their retail outlets that use FLTs on-site.

Andy Kellett at Calor believes Eurocell’s experience is a great example of how busy manufacturers can overcome concerns about switching to green fuel supplies for fear of disruptions to their operations. He says: “We worked closely with Eurocell to help allay any fears that opting for BioLPG would have an impact on productivity.  Due to BioLPG’s ability to be stored in LPG facilities and our well-planned equipment switch programme, we achieved a seamless transition across all of Eurocell’s bulk storage sites. Combined with the carbon savings possible, it is a very attractive proposition for industrial users.

“We take pride in the service standards we deliver to ensure that customers such as Eurocell can benefit from delivery schedules that underpin the company’s operational needs. They can also have peace of mind knowing that security of supply is in place, even during times when fuel supply chains can be compromised, for example during periods when extreme weather occurs.”

By switching to Calor’s BioLPG tariff, Eurocell is adding another major milestone to its sustainability journey; procuring renewable fuel power for its important forklift truck fleet now joins the accolade of eco-friendly steps it is taking across its business.

www.calor.co.uk