Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Thermal Transport Europe GmbH (MTTE) presented its expanded portfolio of transport cooling units at the trade fairs Nufam in Karlsruhe and transport.CH in Bern. The focus of the trade fair appearances was the electrification of the cooling units for different vehicle classes—from vans to trailers. In addition to new fully electric systems, the company demonstrated practical applications from the distribution sector, including a customer vehicle of Landmetzgerei Heinzelmann, which is in daily operation with an electrically powered cooling unit.
Electric units for transporters and trailers
MTTE presented three new units: the fully electric underfloor cooling unit TEU, the TEF 1500 trailer cooling unit with external battery, and the TEK for transporters. The emphasis was on applications in food distribution. Several customer vehicles were shown that are already in daily operation with electric Mitsubishi units.
Pilot project with Landmetzgerei Heinzelmann
As part
of the trade fair presentations MTTE introduced a customer project with Landmetzgerei Heinzelmann from the Black Forest. The basis is the BE-Combi 3500 PLUS system, a mini semi-trailer combination based on a Mercedes transporter with a refrigerated box and TEK cooling unit. The vehicle has a permissible gross train weight of 7.0 tonnes and may be driven with either the old BE driving license (before 01-2013) or the new BE license (after 01-2013). The BE-Combi system is also toll-free.
“The highlight of the BE-Combi 3500 PLUS System is that this combination can be driven with a BE driving license and is also toll-free, from which the operator benefits,” says Sascha Kramer, Managing Director of BE-Combi Deutschland GmbH.
The Landmetzgerei uses the vehicle for day trips with up to 300 kilometers range and up to 16 unloading stops. An external battery and door contact sensors
ensure that the cooling operation remains active even when the engine is switched off. Thus, the cargo area temperature is kept constant during the entire delivery process.
“Our drivers therefore do not need a truck driving license for this vehicle, which makes our staffing planning significantly more flexible,” says Rainer Scheurenbrand, Managing Director of Landmetzgerei Heinzelmann. “In addition, we have with Mitsubishi’s TEK a very energy-efficient cooling system that helps reduce noise and exhaust emissions. As a sustainably operating company, we place great importance on that.”
Technical features of the TEK cooling unit
The TEK series was developed for distribution transport with vans. The unit is driven by a 24-volt generator and is characterized by compact dimensions while delivering high cooling capacity. It reaches up to 4,000 watts at 0 °C and 2,000 watts at −20 °C. Compared with the previous version, the TEK
offers higher cooling, heating, and air performance with more compact dimensions and a 20 percent reduced evaporator weight.
The hermetically sealed compressor operates with a closed refrigerant circuit that requires only a small amount of refrigerant. This eliminates the need for the annual leak test. This reduces maintenance effort and downtime in operation.
“With our attractive portfolio we meet the demand for economical and environmentally friendly solutions for transport cooling. We actively support our customers in the gradual decarbonization of their refrigerated vehicle fleets,” emphasizes MTTE managing director Björn Reckhorn.
Strategy for electrification of cooling technology
MTTE is the European general importer of the Japanese Mitsubishi cooling systems. The Osnabrück-based company continually expands its product portfolio and service network in Europe. The goal is the gradual electrification of all equipment classes—from transporter to trailer units—and the development of economical, low-emission solutions for temperature-controlled distribution
