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In slightly less than 12months since Waste Management World carried the exclusive test report on the Volvo/Geesink Norba diesel electric hybrid refuse collection vehicle being trialled by Renova in Gothenburg, Sweden, a further unit has been delivered to French-based contractor Veolia, for use on waste collection contract in London, England.
The Volvo 6x2 rear steer chassis, running at 26tonnes gross weight, is fitted with a Geesink Norba 'Plug-in' battery electric hybrid compaction system and will be used to evaluate the options of increasing 'double shifting' of RCVs in the heavily congested inner city London Borough of Westminster.
While there will always be noise emissions issues related to the collection of garbage from domestic and 'trade' premisses (such as shops and offices), the reduced noise of the 'Plug-In' system - which does away with a conventional diesel engine speed-related power take off to power the hydraulics - is claimed to offer considerable longterm operational advantages, claim manufacturers Geesink Norba, as in addition to fuel savings, shock loadings - and thus, downtime - are also reduced.
When these advantages are coupled to the use of diesel electric hybrid drive truck chassis, further significant fuel and noise savings are claimed. In the case of the Volvo, this figure is expected to be over 20percent and possibly higher, as running in electric only mode during off-peak traffic conditions (only made possible by having a quieter vehicles in the first place) is likely to further reduce both fuel consumption and the overall carbon footprint of the vehicle significantly.
There is also a significant 'PR advantage' in switching to hybrids at present for any city wishing to be seen as 'Tourist Friendly' in these difficult economic times, while still picking up waste materials in downtown areas in the most efficient manner.
The Geesink Norba 'Plug-In' (its battery system can be recharged between shifts) system is now in production and can also be installed on conventional diesel truck chassis, while the production of Volvo diesel electric hybrid chassis is now likely to start in 2011 - although increased customer interest might help improve on that.
