Efficiency and sustainability are hot topics in tray pooling. Innovation is key to keep improving these pillars. As a tray pooling service provider in the fresh supply chain, Euro Pool system invests and puts a lot of effort into research and development (R&D). Not without a reason: we want to maintain our position as the knowledge partner in circular tray pooling.
CoolRail is a cooled train connection between Valencia and Rotterdam. This innovative initiative improves efficiency and sustainability in the fresh supply chain significantly. The train transports fresh products to retailers in Northern Europe and returns to Spain with empty, folded trays for the producers to fill. The extra space is offered to external partners who produce goods for the Southern European market. With one CoolRail trip, you save out on 42 truck transports, unburdening the road network and reducing CO2 emissions by 70% - 90% as a result.
Research and development push efficiency to the limits and simultaneously fuel sustainability. Our tray pooling solutions are a circular system, but nevertheless, we still feel obligated to lower our impact on the environment even more. These are a few of our most recent developments and projects in progress:
Euro Pool Systems’ first standardised trays were a game-changer in the fresh supply chain. Rigid trays have been the status quo for a lot of companies ever since. However, our urge to evolve and increase efficiency encouraged us to keep innovating. Our current, reusable folding trays, optimise the whole supply chain and have led to a significant reduction of CO2 emissions. We believe that innovation is a process where ideas are developed into viable business models, and is accomplished through collaboration on different company levels.
At the reverse logistics distribution centre Zellik in Belgium, Euro Pool System and Delhaize have formed a partnership to optimise the use of reusable carriers within Delhaize’s supply chain. In 2018, Zellik won the prestigious Supply Chain Award for ‘Project of the year’. This prize is awarded for the innovative ideas that enhance the efficiency of the supply chain. With reverse logistics, direct transport from the retailer to the distribution centre is realised, resulting in a significant reduction in transport kilometres. Furthermore, Zellik is the first service centre where wash water is purified and reused in the cleaning process – reducing water consumption by 70%. These innovations result in a reduction of both the carbon footprint and the water demand of the service centres.
Developing new sensor technology and software to be able to monitor the flows of our trays and the conditioning of the products during their trip.
By recycling our trays our old trays become one of the raw materials for our new produced trays.
By reducing the water, and heating being used for our washing process we are for instance able to reduce the CO2 footprint of our washing process with 70%.