Kalmar, part of Cargotec, announces its commitment to reduce emissions in cargo and material handling operations by fostering eco-efficient technologies.
According to the commitment Kalmar's full offering will be available as electrically powered versions by 2021. The target is in line with Cargotec's sustainability roadmap announced in 2016.
Innovation has always been at the heart of Kalmar's business. The very first electrically powered machine developed by Kalmar, an electric forklift truck for smaller capacity ranges, was introduced to the market already in 2008, and since then, Kalmar has systematically extended its offering with diesel-electric, hybrid and electrically powered machines to help customers reduce the environmental impact of their operations. Today, over 50 percent of Kalmar cargo handling equipment is already available with electric power sources.
"Our industry is evolving at a remarkable pace. Governments, local and regional authorities around the globe are rapidly deploying regulations and initiatives to support the adoption of eco-efficient technologies. A prime example of this development is the Green Air Act in California, US. At the same time, our customers are asking for electrically powered equipment and solutions that cut emissions. Kalmar has a strong track record in providing efficient cargo and material handling solutions to our customers, and we've consistently revolutionised container handling for the benefit of our customers. We have been leading the port automation development for more than 20 years, and we have consistently developed our offering in order to help customers improve their every move. Now we are taking yet another step in our commitment to improve customer operations with our plan to provide our full offering as electrically powered by 2021," says Antti Kaunonen, President, Kalmar.
Kalmar has also introduced its future vision for mobile equipment. The Kalmar Future Generation paints a picture of what Kalmar believes the future of cargo and material handling solutions will look like in the future.
"The vision for Kalmar Future Generation is a result of significant investments in research and development in order to envisage how the future of material handling solutions will look like. We believe electricity is the power source of the future and that purpose-built design and integrated serviceability will enable maximum availability and performance for the material handling fleets," says Dan Pettersson, SVP Mobile Equipment at Kalmar.
"In the near future, driverless vehicles will enter the logistic operations in industrial and material handling, expanding the benefits of automation to the full logistics chain in the customer operations. We at Kalmar believe that by harnessing the power of new technologies, we will create state of the art material handling solutions with a cutting edge design that will keep our customers ahead of the game," Dan concludes.