- Supply chain and logistics solutions leader anticipates disruption with an agile and sustainable approach to the transport of EV batteries.
- CHEP Automotive uses 10 million crates and containers to offer a ‘share and reuse’ pooling service to its 5,000 customers.
File Photo: CHEP AutomotiveWEYBRIDGE, United Kingdom, June 15, 2022 – Already speaking earlier this year on the evolution of packaging to support electric vehicle (EV) battery development at Odette’s Building Solutions for Sustainable Supply Chains conference, CHEP will offer a live demonstration of its innovative and sustainable packaging solutions on its stand at The Battery Show Europe at the Stuttgart Messe on June 29, 2022.
CHEP Automotive, part of Brambles, uses 10 million crates and containers to offer a ‘share and reuse’ pooling service to its 5,000 customers. With passenger EV sales projected to increase from 6.5 million in 2021 to over 70 million by 2040 (BloombergNEF), original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) around the world face the challenge of packaging and transporting dangerous and costly lithium-ion batteries.
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Transport of EV Batteries: Waiting for Standardization to Arrive
If EVs are hailed as the answer to climate problems, their manufacture and transport cannot generate a sizeable carbon footprint. With the composition, design, and size of batteries constantly evolving, most OEMs, however – while waiting for more standardization to arrive – still use one-way packaging to transport lithium-ion batteries rather than investing in more robust and reusable alternatives.
As part of the supply chain is already standardized – shipping and trucking containers of set dimensions – CHEP has found a way to work with their recycled and reusable plastic containers (EuroBins and IsoBins) that have already been designed to optimize transportation volumes and reduce empty transport miles. The innovation lies in the bespoke development of adjustable thermoformed trays and inserts to optimize the loading of those same UN-certified bins. These inserts can be easily redesigned over time and are cheaper and quicker to replace than the plastic containers themselves.
“Standardization and sustainability are buzzwords when it comes to the EV battery supply chain. But with a moving feast of electric batteries and current supply chain challenges, we are in a ‘just in case’ rather than a ‘just in time’ scenario,” said Safak Aktekin, Senior Commercial Director, CHEP Automotive EU & NA. “We can’t wait for battery standardization to happen before we address sustainability and waste. That’s why at CHEP, we work with standardized containers, but modular inserts that allow us to adapt reusable packaging – in a sustainable way and on a global level – to the ever-changing needs of the automotive industry.”
About CHEP
CHEP is one of the world’s most sustainable logistics businesses, offering a share-and-reuse model for its 345 million+ pallets, crates and containers and serving the FMCG, fresh produce, beverage, retail, automotive and general manufacturing industries. Employing 11,500 people, CHEP is part of the Brambles Group and operates in approximately 60 countries.
www.chep.com │ www.brambles.com
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