Jason Mathers: EDF+Business

As part of its ambitious goal announced today to achieve zero-carbon operations by 2040, Walmart outlined a notable timeframe for transforming its truck fleet. The company will accelerate efforts to pilot zero-emission trucks over the next few years and then aggressively ramp up its use of these vehicles, in order to achieve a full fleet […]

It’s an everyday scene in Southern California: a big rig hauling a metal shipping container from a port facility to a distribution center or rail yard. Last week, this old story got a new twist with a 120-mile emission-free haul featuring two shipping behemoths from Northwest Arkansas: Walmart and J.B. Hunt. Our nation’s two biggest […]

Momentum is building for federal support of truck electrification, and last week’s launch of the National Zero-Emission Truck Coalition is a great example of how federal incentives are urgently needed to clean up our air, create tens of thousands of jobs and solidify American competitiveness in the global zero-emission truck market. Organized by CALSTART, the ZET coalition […]

In an affront to the health of all Americans, U.S. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is trying to reopen a loophole for super-polluting glider trucks. This action reflects the worst of Washington politics: a special deal for the benefit of a single company; a sloppy, industry-funded analysis; and a process that shuts out EPA’s own staff […]

American businesses benefit tremendously from the robust voluntary and regulatory programs of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. These programs are now under threat of massive budget cuts and regulatory rollbacks.  In the coming weeks and months, the experts at EDF+Business will examine what a weakened EPA means for business. It’s safe to say that the […]

Our nation is making great progress in reducing the environmental impact of trucking. This is tremendous news, of course, as trucking – the main method of transporting the goods and services we desire – is critical to the fabric of our society. Consider these facts: New trucks have 95 percent fewer emissions of diesel particulate […]

PepsiCo, one of the world’s largest food and beverage companies, this week announced new sustainability goals. The goal that caught my attention is: “we intend to reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions across our value chain by at least 20%” In setting this impressive goal, PepsiCo join Kellogg’s and General Mills in setting big, comprehensive greenhouse gas […]

Across America, companies have reason today to celebrate an important step to drive cost and emissions out of their supply chain. The U.S. EPA and U.S. Department of Transportation unveiled new fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas standards for heavy trucks. Once fully implemented, the new standards will cut over a billion tons of climate pollution […]

There was some good news from the U.S. Energy Information Agency recently. It found that the Clean Trucks program, which is expected to be jointly finalized this summer by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT), will deliver huge carbon emission reductions. The Clean Trucks program is designed to improve fuel […]

There was some good news from the U.S. Energy Information Agency recently. It found that the Clean Trucks program, which is expected to be jointly finalized this summer by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT), will deliver huge carbon emission reductions. The Clean Trucks program is designed to improve fuel […]

We all like clear-cut, simple, black and white answers. But the world, as you well know, is a really complex place. Yet despite this general acknowledgment of complexity, we still get caught-up in simplified debates: paper vs plastic; cloth vs disposable diapers; and now shopping online vs shopping at the store. This is not a […]

The U.S. has put in place well-designed policies to cut climate pollution, and, with adopted and proposed policies, the nation’s 2025 climate reduction goals are within reach.  However, we are not there yet, and important work remains. Big trucks have a critical contribution to make in cutting emissions now and well into the future. Cost-effective […]

It’s one thing to reach a goal, stop and toast your success. But in the case of Walmart’s announcement yesterday, the finish line became a mile marker and now the company is looking at how much farther it can go. In 2005, we worked with Walmart to set its first long-term freight goals – to increase […]

Collaborative logistics – where multiple companies cooperate to share freight capacity – holds the key to dramatic reductions in freight emissions and costs. Unfortunately, most consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies continue to manage discrete lines of supply to retail customers, passing up these opportunities. Partially full trucks today run side-by-side on the highway, even though they are […]

Ben and Jerry’s became the latest corporate voice calling for strong fuel-efficiency and greenhouse gas standards for heavy trucks. In a Guardian op-ed, CEO Jostein Solheim made a compelling triple-bottom-line case for protective standards for new trucks. Mr. Solheim noted that seventeen percent of the company’s carbon footprint is associated with transporting products. This includes […]

By Jason Mathers

Whether it’s a trailer, a container or a boxcar, better capacity utilization reduces the number of required freight runs and reduces truck emissions.

Despite the fact that most logistic professionals understand the value of building fuller truck-loads, recent research showed that 15–25 percent of U.S. trucks on the road are empty and, for non-empty miles, trailers are 36 percent underutilized.

Source: Homayoun Taherian, Cnergistics, LLC

Capturing just half of this under-utilized capacity would cut freight truck emissions by 100 million

tons per year – about 20 percent of all U.S. freight emissions – and reduce expenditures on diesel fuel by more than $30 billion a year (CELDi Physical Internet Project).

Nearly every company can improve trailer capacity utilization. Here are some real-life examples:

Kraft Foods: Because of the variety of products either cubing-out trailers (reaching the volume limit) or weighing-out trailers (reaching the truck weight limit), Kraft’s refrigerated outbound shipments were averaging only 82 percent of weight capacity. Kraft used specialized software to convert demand into optimized orders to maximize truck usage without damaging products. As a result, Kraft cut 6.2 million truck miles and reduced truck-load costs by 4 percent.

Walmart: The world’s largest retailer was able to increase the number of pallets shipped in a truck from 26 to 30 simply by side loading pallets.

Stonyfield Farms: This dairy product manufacturer worked with its clients to help them decrease the use of dunnage (inexpensive or waste material used to protect cargo during transportation), allowing the company to maximize the available space per trailer.

What’s your load factor on outbound trailers?

To improve trailer capacity utilization as well as source other ideas to create a more sustainable freight operation, download EDF’s free Green Freight Handbook.

 

By Jason Mathers

Here in the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation will unveil new fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas standards for big trucks soon, according to the New York Times. At first glance, many companies might conclude that these new polices do not impact them. They’d be mistaken. In fact, they would be overlooking an enormous opportunity to cut costs while delivering real-world progress on sustainability.

The fact is that nearly every company in the United States is reliant on heavy trucks, which move 70% of U.S. freight. Brands and manufacturers use trucks to bring in supplies and ship out final products. Retailers and grocers count on trucks to keep the shelves stocked. Technology companies need trucks to deliver the hardware that powers their online services. Even Major League Baseball has turned its dependence on trucking into a quasi-holiday.

More efficient trucks matter to all business because they will cut supply chain costs. Last year, American businesses spent $657 billion dollars on trucking services. A lot of that money went to pay for fuel – the top cost for trucking, accounting for nearly 40% of all costs.

EDF and Ceres teamed up with MJ Bradley and Associates to assess how strong heavy truck fuel efficiency standards would benefit businesses that rely on trucking. In an update of analysis originally produced last year, we found that companies could see freight rates fall nearly 7% as owners of tractor-trailer units see their costs fall by $0.21/mile. Given that class 8 trucks logged nearly 170 billion miles last year, that $0.21 per mile savings, for example, equates to $34 billion dollars less in annual freight costs.

The magnitude of the savings in this update was consistent with our findings from last year; however, there are important changes in the underlying cost structure. In this new analysis we modeled significantly lower future U.S. diesel prices, in light of new fuel cost projections by the Energy Information Administration. We also updated the cost of more efficient equipment based on recent analysis by the International Council on Clean Transportation.

These savings add up for large shippers. A big consumer goods company, for example, could save over $10 million a year in 2030 by using trucking companies with newer trucks. As an added kicker, these trucks also would help meet the supply chain sustainability targets that leading brands are increasingly setting.

So, while your company may not own or make big trucks, cleaner, more efficient trucks hold a big opportunity for its triple bottom line.

By Jason Mathers

It’s no secret that better trailer utilization reduces the number of required freight runs. Fewer trucks on the road means lower freight costs and reduced greenhouse gas emissions – an excellent freight sustainability strategy.

Despite the obvious benefits, recent research from Cnergistics has determined that 15 to 25 percent of the trailers on U.S. roads are empty. For the non-empty miles, these trailers are 36 percent under-utilized. Capturing just half of this underutilized capacity would cut emissions from freight trucks by 100 million tons per year – about 20 percent of all U.S. freight emissions – and reduce expenditures on diesel fuel by more than $30 billion a year.

Source: Homayoun Taherian, Cnergistics, LLC

If you’re serious about pursuing freight sustainability strategies, load optimization is a good place to start.

Following are just a few examples of load optimization strategies in action. More can be found in EDF’s Green Freight Handbook – a practical guide for developing freight sustainability strategies for business.

• Kraft Foods realized that, because of the variety of products either cubing out trailers (reaching the volume limit far short of the weight capacity) or weighing out trailers (the reverse), its refrigerated outbound shipments were averaging only 82 percent of weight capacity. To address the problem, Kraft used a software tool to convert demand into orders optimized to maximize truck usage without damaging products. As a result, Kraft cut 6.2 million truck miles and reduced truck-load costs by 4 percent.
• Walmart was able to increase the number of pallets shipped in a truck from 26 to 30 simply by side-loading pallets. This is one of many steps the retailer has taken to achieve its goal of doubling the efficiency of its transportation operations.
• Stonyfield Farms developed new policies related to lead-time and minimum order size to ensure that its shipping containers were full. As part of its approach, the company worked with its clients to help them decrease the use of dunnage (inexpensive or waste material used to protect cargo during transportation), allowing the company to maximize the available space per trailer.

When it comes to freight sustainability strategies, load optimization is relatively simple, since most of the factors that need to change in order to improve it are within your control.  To make a fast, measurable impact on greenhouse gas emissions, send your freight out in fewer, fuller loads.

By Jason Mathers

There are many ways to reduce freight-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. But which strategies make the most sense for you?

EDF’s Green Freight Handbook provides a framework to help you answer this question based on what initiatives will achieve the greatest environmental benefit in the least amount of time. The key is our Green Freight Diagnostic Tool.

Here’s how it works.  We focus on EDF’s five key principles for greener freight:

1. Get the most out of every move
2. Choose the most carbon-efficient mode
3. Collaborate
4. Redesign your logistics network
5. Demand cleaner equipment and practices

For each key area of potential, we list a series of simple questions designed to help you determine which strategies are the low-effort, high-return opportunities. You’ll need some data in order to answer the questions, but it’s a pretty easy exercise to start moving down the path toward a cleaner, lower-cost freight program.

Here’s a small sample from just one of the green freight diagnostic sections, "Get the most out of every move." As you can see, it explains the opportunity and allows you to measure the potential impact at a high level.

Question Opportunity Potential Benefit Can your customers be flexible about arrival dates to enable freight consolidation? With a transportation management system or TMS, companies can identify opportunities to hold orders for consolidation. Where feasible, and with the right incentives, companies can then send one larger shipment to customers instead of sending two smaller ones. Reduction of product shipping volume by up to 30 percent. Have you recently analyzed opportunities for balancing high density and low density products? If no, explore how you might be able to better balance weight and cube constraints. Options include matching internal freight or co-loading with a company with a similar need and transportation lanes. 20-30 percent net reduction in process and resource costs. Can you side load your pallets 90 degrees when loading them on the truck? Explore the feasibility of side loading pallets to enable the loading of more cargo per truck. This will be feasible only for fleets that cube out, but do not weigh-out. This approach will require changes to pallet construction and loading. 8-15 percent increase in truck productivity.

That’s just a small sampling.  Each of the five sections provides a comprehensive diagnostic assessment tool. Download the Green Freight Handbook to access the tool.

By Jason Mathers

Spring is high season for corporate responsibility reports, with some of the world’s most recognizable brands — including Kellogg’s, Walmart, Anheuser-Busch, Apple, Adidas, General Mills, H&M, Lowes, CVS and Hershey’s — releasing their latest updates. While each company has its own unique sustainability challenges and priorities, every one of them has a global supply chain that requires an extensive logistics network to move goods from manufacturing facilities to end customers.

What reading these reports told me is that greening freight operations is becoming a key priority for these companies, with three trends in particular standing out to me:

1. Tracking logistics emissions is a standard practice. Seven out of the ten recently released reports included data on fuel use or greenhouse gas emissions associated with freight transportation. Several companies were tracking only emissions from outbound freight transportation, presumably because of a lack of visibility into inbound moves. Adidas, one of the three that did not include information on emissions or fuel use from freight movement, did include a detailed breakdown of moves by transport modes and emissions from distribution centers and other facilities.

2. Setting performance goals is a well-accepted practice. Four of the ten companies have performance-based goals to improve environmental impact associated with freight transportation. For example:

• Walmart is seeking to double its fleet efficiency compared to 2005, and is currently 87% of the way to meeting this impressive goal.
• General Mills has a goal to reduce fuel use for its outbound moves by 35% compared to its 2005 consumption. The company has made considerable progress too, reducing fuel use by 22% compared to 2005.
• Anheuser-Busch set a goal in 2014 to reduce greenhouse gases from its global logistics operations by 15% per hectoliter sold. Its goal has a broad scope too, including inbound and outbound transportation as well as warehousing.

3. Seeking to shape external factors is a leadership practice. Much of the impact of moving freight is beyond the operational control of these companies. They have limited influence on the availability of low-impact fuels, the efficiency of freight equipment or the capacity of intermodal systems. In addition to focusing on the factors freight shippers can control, leading companies are trying to shape the overall system to provide more low-impact choices.

Walmart embraced this dynamic by identifying “several key success factors for driving greater efficiency across the industry.” At the top of the list were policy outcomes, including the next generation fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas standards for freight trucks. Walmart noted in its latest sustainability report that policies like this “phase 2 GHG rule can present key opportunities to improve efficiency across the industry in a coordinated, responsible and safe way.”

EDF is calling on the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation to set new fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas standards for heavy trucks that cut fuel consumption by 40 percent in 2025 compared to 2010. It's an encouraging sign that Walmart — a large fleet operator itself and a leading freight shipper — acknowledges the significant potential benefits of well-crafted standards.

As these trends demonstrate, there is strong momentum for greening freight operations. The steps these companies are taking are consistent with the EDF Green Freight Journey:

• Tracking performance is a critical first step to improvement.
• Undertaking pilot improvement projects and scaling up the successful ones comes next.
• Setting a long-term improvement goal, like those set by General Mills, Walmart and Anheuser-Busch, is a key next step that ensures a focus on continuous improvement.

Whether your company is just starting on its own Green Freight Journey or already has an established goal, we encourage you to download the EDF Green Freight Handbook, our practical guide to help companies develop strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and overall costs linked to freight transportation.