E-Lieferungen - E-deliveries in the Allgäu
Overview
Background & policy context:
Fostering natonal strategies to implement battery electric cars in the German market the Schaufenster Program called for solutions around electromobility in early 2012. Based on extensive methodical analyses and the acquired knowledge, the setup of a small-series production of 40 battery-powered vehicles for the delivery traffic by ABT was initiated in the showcase project “E-Lieferungen im Allgäu”. The vehicles were designed for the delivery traffic of the Deutsche Post DHL Group and employed and tested in their distribution fleets as well as in regional companies. The UAS Kempten essentially contributed to the advancement and the qualification of the batteries and provided crucial inputs regarding the acquisition and analysis of the usage and load conditions of the vehicles. Moreover, it acquired knowledge concerning the user acceptance. ABT gained expertise and developed plants for the small-series production of purely electric light commercial vehicles in 3 segments: the ABT eCaddy, the ABT eT5 and the ABT eBox on the basis of a VW T6 with long wheelbase, 4,25 t admissible total weight and a loading space of 20 m³
Objectives:
- Electric delivery vehicles are an appropriate mean of transport to courier-express-packet deliveries
- There are not enough electric vehicles available on the market
- Energy consumption varies significantly and is up to twice as high, depending on driving style and season
- ICT- technology and driving assistance systems for monitoring can help for more stability in range and efficiency in fleet management
- Driving range is not an issue as it is possible to plan for this
- Down times were mostly due to the lack of after sales experiences and are not considered a severe problem
- Cost-parity to combustible vehicles is not yet reached, however, is expected to be a matter of technological progress in the near future
- The project results have already been implemented for larger scale production
Methodology:
In previous projects the consortium has gained knowledge around battery electric vehicles. As no delivery cars from serial production were found on the market at the time, this project built up expertise to supply Deutsche Post Group with the required vehicles for implementation in a greened fleet. As the quickly increasing packet market volume called for larger cars during the project, beside the Volkswagen Caddy, the T5 and later the T6 with 4,25 metric tons gross weight were developed as Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV).
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