Cartwright attracts unique order from Chile for high-specification double deck trailers
Aug 16, 2016
Cartwright has recently established a foothold for the first time in South America following unique orders for its double deck trailers from a company in Chile.
Ecobox, a leading logistics operator in Chile, ordered four Cartwright double deck refrigerated trailers with a very detailed specification for its requirements to carry frozen, chilled and ambient products. The four specially commissioned trailers have been now delivered and other orders may be in the pipeline.
The delivery of the high specification double deck trailers followed extensive research by the American supermarket giant Walmart which has the largest number of retail outlets in South America as well as in North America.
The US-based supermarket chain wanted improved efficiencies and a much better system than it currently had in South America. Its objective was to carry multiple product types accommodating ambient, chilled and frozen produce with as much volume as possible replacing its old system of one load with one type of product. After looking at operations across Europe, including Germany, they were impressed by Asda's successful use of Cartwright double deck trailers in its food distribution operation and other refrigerated solutions from the Cartwright range.
Meetings were subsequently held between Ecobox representatives and engineers at the Cartwright factory in south Manchester where they were shown various refrigerated systems. They were also taken to Asda depots in order to show them Cartwright's double deck refrigerated equipment in operation.
Ecobox was amazed by the amount of loadfill in terms of product and efficiencies Asda were getting with Cartwright's double deck refrigerated trailer which then posed questions from them on how best to suit their particularly demands in Chile including geographical challenges, climate change and load diversity including not just delivering frozen chilled and ambient but also carrying other produce by return i.e. bread, meat etc.
The Ecobox logistics operation in Chile is diverse servicing a wide range of customers and goods from bakeries and confectionaries to supermarkets and stores, catering for fish, meat and a wide mix of foodstuffs, basically every type of produce one would see on the shelves of a normal supermarket.
Cartwright subsequently sent Clive Dingle, the company's Specialist Build Sales Manager, over to Chile with the aim of surveying its logistics operation and how this could be improved through Cartwright's design input and innovative ideas with particular attention to its refrigeration requirements.
The survey lasted a week and Cartwright very quickly came to the decision that a new high specification trailer would be necessary to meet the ECOBOX remit to accommodate frozen, chilled and ambient produce and also to tackle the diverse local conditions in terms of climate change, road network and terrain.
The Cartwright solution was to create three compartments within a double deck trailer. The company also had to provide additional support with very detailed training manuals and a lot of support information which had to be translated into Spanish.
The new Ecobox trailers from Cartwright are mounted with Carrier Transicold Vector 1950 MT (multi-temp) units, each benefiting from Carrier's patented E-Drive all-electric technology, which removes the mechanical transmissions found in conventional belt-driven refrigeration systems and transforms engine power into electricity through a generator.
This power method ensures precise temperature control, for maximum load protection, along with the ability to heat and cool different compartments within the trailer simultaneously. It also makes the Vector 1950 MT system ideally suited to hauling larger loads over long distances, making it perfect for the geographic requirements of operating within Chile.
The Cartwright team developed a totally new design double deck trailer for the Chilean market, which was far different to any trailer in Europe in order to accommodate the country's extreme weather conditions.
A new internal bulkhead was designed for the frozen department over the foredeck and because separate accesses had to be created to the frozen department, they had to give consideration to the chassis in order to maintain its structural integrity.
The technology used by Cartwright engineers for the moving double deck was divided into compartments, frozen, chilled and ambient, and had to be extremely well engineered because the trailer length is over 16 metres with the advantage of having the well proven Cartwright double deck system – which was adapted internally to work in minus temperatures.
The task of building such a specialist trailer for the South American market also involved a lot of detail in terms of how to actually transport the equipment to South America. The trailer's frames had to be fitted with bolsters so that the equipment could be crane loaded onto ships, for the three legs of the long deep sea journey to the Southern Hemisphere. Delivery was also a challenge, bearing in mind Chile is an extremely long country and mountainous with a lot of tolls, varying terrain, tunnels and mountainous passes.
Rich Anderson, Cartwright's Sales & Marketing Director commented: "The specialist trailer from Cartwright for Ecobox in Chile is not only unique in South America but North America also.
"No other company can source this equipment in North or South America and Cartwright was recommended because we are the leading experts in double deck equipment, with probably more double deck experience than anyone else in the world."
