With 66 tractors including trailers and semitrailers as well as two electric trucks, Alfred Schuon GmbH is modernizing its fleet. The Baden-Württemberg-based freight forwarding and logistics company with approximately 250 own vehicles is thus expanding its fleet by 66 jumbo road trains and mega trailers from the brands MAN and Mercedes-Benz. At the same time, the future orientation is to be emphasized with two MB eActros 600, the most powerful electric trucks of the Stuttgart brand. Among the new additions are also Actros L tractors for long haul with an aerodynamically optimized ProCabin comfort driver cab. The heavy transporters are to be sent on Europe-wide tours from the headquarters in Haiterbach and the location in Veszprém, Hungary, while the electric trucks will be used in shuttle traffic.
"With our new vehicles, we are not only relying on the latest technology and improved driving comfort: Through the new additions with ProCabins and the fully electric
tractor units, we are taking another step towards greater sustainability,"
says Alexander Schuon, one of the two managing directors of the Alfred Schuon Group, which specializes in jumbo and system transports as well as individual logistics concepts. The logistics provider with ten German and two Hungarian locations currently has one of the two battery-electric versions in operation, the second will be delivered in autumn. In total, there will then be three electric trucks in the fleet of the freight forwarder specialized in European transportation with about 650 employees. Some of the other vehicles in the company's fleet also have alternative drives: according to the information, some cars are, for example, hybrids.
Electric Trucks in Shuttle Traffic
The battery-electric versions are used on fixed shuttle tours, with a charging infrastructure precisely aligned with the logistics processes. Schuon:
"The entry into electromobility is an important part of our green logistics strategy".
With the use of electric
vehicles, the aim is primarily to gain experience under real conditions in order to advance the topic of sustainable transport solutions. In addition, it is also about convincing the many drivers who are still reserved about the technology with "well-thought-out logistics concepts and excellent driving characteristics", according to the managing director.
One of Schuon-Green Logistic's principles, according to its own statements, is the reduction of CO2 emissions through various methods such as increasing energy efficiency and minimizing environmental impacts with regard to noise, dirt, and waste. For example, to save fuel, the speed is limited to 85 km/h. In addition, the diesel alternative HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil) as well as liquefied natural gas (LNG) are also partially considered as fuel in the sustainable concept. The trucks themselves change rapidly: the company acquires about 40 new vehicles annually to always meet the latest emission standards with high-performance exhaust technology: "The average age of our fleet,
at under 3 years, speaks for itself," it says on the website.
MAN and Mercedes-Benz for Volume Transports
Nearly all of the current new acquisitions are volume vehicles - due to unavailability as mega trailers or jumbo road trains, the electrified eActros trucks are excluded from this orientation.
The mega transport vehicles consist on the one hand of jumbo road trains from the brand MAN and on the other hand the Actros mega trailers and jumbo road trains from Mercedes-Benz. Some additionally contain a truck-mounted forklift. These classic heavy transporters are also planned in fixed shuttle traffic as well as in European tramp traffic as required. The freight forwarding company founded in 1951 intends to remain true to its core business:
"Our focus remains on volume transports - with different payloads, an optimized total weight, and economical operating costs,"
says Schuon. The family business has 370 additional dispatched vehicles in use alongside 250 of
