POTTSVILLE, PA – On Wednesday, January 20, a fleet of 50 hydrogen fuel cell-powered pallet trucks will be mobilized in the produce facility at Wegmans Retail Service Center (RSC). In March, nine hydrogen fuel cell-powered fork lifts will be added to the fleet. The project was, in part, made possible by a $1 million grant from the Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority (PEDA). The funds were used to offset a portion of the cost of installing an on-site hydrogen infrastructure, which includes an outdoor hydrogen storage tank and indoor fueling dispensers.
Wegmans hopes to convert its entire lift truck fleet at the Pottsville facility to hydrogen fuel cells over the next few years. To this point, Wegmans’ material-handling equipment was all powered with lead acid batteries.
Wegmans purchased the 50 Crown pallet trucks and 9 Crown stand-up forklifts from Lift Inc. Lancaster, PA. Lift Inc. will also supply Wegmans with Plug Power’s GenDrive™ fuel cell solution to power its fleet. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. of Allentown, PAinstalled the on-site hydrogen infrastructure and will supply the hydrogen fuel.
Dave Allar, Wegmans’ RSC maintenance manager, has been anxious for this day to arrive and so have employees at the Pottsvillefacility. “Our folks tested the equipment early last year, and could immediately see what it would mean to equipment performance and productivity.” Allar compared the experience to that of driving a car. “Whether a gas tank is full or down to a quarter tank, a car will travel at 60 mph. Not so when battery power is used; performance diminishes as the battery discharges.”
In addition to greater productivity and lower operating costs, greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced. A hydrogen fuel cell produces energy through an electrochemical reaction. Because hydrogen is the fuel source, heat and water are the only byproducts. By converting the lift equipment in just the produce area of its facility to hydrogen fuel cells, carbon emissions will be reduced by an amount equivalent to removing 134 cars off the road each year.
“We appreciate the investment that PEDA made in this project. It enabled us to do something that will improve job satisfaction for our employees, benefit the environment, and is right for our business,” says Mike Cullen, Wegmans’ vice president of distribution planning.”
In addition to its Retail Service Center, Wegmans now operates 13 stores in Pennsylvania, with plans for 2 more in the future. One of the future stores will open in Malvern, PA later this year. Wegmans has approximately 7,000 employees in the state of Pennsylvania.
Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. is a 75-store supermarket chain with stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, andMaryland. The family-owned company, founded in 1916, is recognized as an industry leader and innovator. Wegmans has been named one of the ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ by FORTUNE magazine for twelve consecutive years. In 2009, Wegmans ranked #5 on the list.
