Thoughts from GreenFleet’s Private Sector Fleet Manager of the Year – Aaron Powell from Speedy

Winning the Private Sector Fleet Manager of the Year title at the prestigious GreenFleet awards at the British motor museum was a fantastic achievement: It was a great night, with lots of familiar faces from around the fleet industry, it is also a great networking event. There was a great vibe of positive energy and anticipation, which was fantastic!

As well as winning Private Sector Fleet Manager, Speedy Services were also shortlisted for the Private Sector Commercial Fleet of the Year. We were amongst some amazing companies and inspirational individuals. To just be there as finalists was a huge achievement in itself.

Winning awards raises not only my profile but Speedy Services, our logo is shown on the night and used in marketing material. It’s easy to focus on day-to-day challenges, but reflection is vital. Not only does it make you feel proud, it also helps you figure out what you do well, but this can only happen when you have a great team behind you, and backing from the senior people at Speedy.

Someone asked me last week what I got out of the awards? There are so many positives to entering the GreenFleet awards regardless of winning. The process forces you to reflect on your goals and, the positives and to think of new ideas on sustainability, which is something that we all must get better at.

I love helping people with my ideas and experience – collaborating with others in a similar position to share advice, expertise and thoughts to help each other succeed. We will definitely be entering the 2023 GreenFleet awards, as we have some fantastic ways to save carbon emissions coming soon.

What have we been up to?

Speedy has two Maxus e Delivery 3s and two Maxus E delivery 9 chassis cabs in operation, as well as 150 Ford E transits on order, as part of efforts to convert more than half of its 1,100-unit-strong commercial fleet to electric or hybrid units by 2025. Based on trials with Ford Pro UK, Speedy has placed an order with Ford for 100 of its E-Transits, which are used to deliver and collect its top 350 core products across the UK and ROI. This has a solar panel roof to save the EV mileage range when using the beacons and tail lift on this vehicles. Speedy has also ordered 50 3.5-tonne E-Transit panel vans, again fitted with solar panel roofs. For its smaller deliveries and collections, Speedy has invested in the Maxus eDELIVER 3 which also has a solar panel roof. These vehicles will cut CO2e emissions by around 1,280 tonnes a year. L

 with 15 per cent more power and 10.5 per cent more electric driving range. Using the motor from the all-new and allelectric e-308 which will arrive in 2023, power rises to 154bhp, and driving range increases to a distance of up to 248 miles (WLTP). Usable battery capacity also increases from 46.6kWh to 48.1kWh.

The Ford E-Transit became GREENFLEET’s Vehicle of the Year, Sponsored by The Algorithm People (now Optimize). The Ford Pro E-Transit offers a comprehensive specification and advanced technologies including a standard 68kWh usable battery capacity, providing a WLTP range of up to 197 miles, with a payload of up to 1,711kg on the van model. The family totals 25 van, double-cab-in-van and chassis cab variants with multiple lengths, roof heights, and GVMs. Priced from £48,0458 (ex VAT) the purchase price for the E-Transit Leader L2H2 350 is £990 lower than the equivalent diesel.

Enabling green mobility

The Leasing Company of the Year was awarded to LeasePlan UK for expanding its services, enabling fleets to go green. LeasePlan has expanded its flagship offering to include LeasePlan Flexible, which is an EV-focused, mid-term rental proposition, with a digital showroom where customers can self-serve through vehicle-selection and contract e-signing. From 2,661 vehicles in 2021, the LeasePlan Flexible fleet has grown to 4,092 vehicles and is predicted to exceed 6,000 vehicles by end-2022 – a 125 per cent increase. Another new addition is EV Salary Sacrifice – a new online portal that focuses on helping drivers transition to EVs through a dedicated hub and the ability to add a home ChargePoint, with the cost spread across the contract term. The past year has also seen the launch of the EV Education Hub - an online resource providing an EV one-stop shop. Europcar Mobility Group UK meanwhile scooped the Mobility Provider of the Year title for continuing to add electric and sustainable vehicles to its fleet. Seventy-five per cent of Europcar’s company car vehicle orders for its own employees are EV and 15 per cent are hybrid. The average CO2 for this fleet is 17g, compared to 114g 12 months ago. What’s more, Europcar’s Flex long-term rental gives business owners the ability to manage operational costs as well as providing the opportunity to ‘try before you buy’ on new motoring technology. The ‘Europcar electric van experience’ demo programme for the Mercedes-Benz eVito van also gives customers the EV experience. The company was recently awarded the EcoVadis Platinum medal and became the first mobility provider to have its carbon reduction objectives approved by Science Based Targets initiative and upgraded to AAA by MSCI Inc.

EV and AFV Champions

Each year, the EV Champion awards recognise individuals working in the fleet, transport and automotive industries that have championed the cause of electric vehicle uptake. These individuals are passionate about EV technology, work to overcome any challenges, and share their experience with others. This in turn has has a positive effect on driving up EV adoption.

The EV Champions for 2022 were Sam Clarke from Gridserve, Oliver Craughan from DPD UK, S-J Mitchell from OVO Energy, Bill Laidlaw from Maxus UK, Linda Grave from EV Driver, and John Curtis from EV Café.

The AFV Champions, meanwhile, who fight the case for alternative fuels, went to Gloria Esposito from Zemo Partnership, Gareth Healy from Redcar & Cleveland Council, and Sarah Gray from Rivus.

Lorna McAtear, head of fleet at the National Grid, won the GREENFLEET Award for Outstanding Achievement for her tireless efforts to decarbonise electric vehicles and share her experience with others. Having worked at several major organisations and led on several electric vehicle related projects, including Optimise Prime, Lorna joined National Grid in August 2019 as fleet manager. She is also a board member of the Association of Fleet Professionals. L www.events.greenfleet.net/