b'12American Journal ofTransportation ajot.com(CURVEcontinued from page 10) of goods through different warehouse and provides increased productivity. zones, streamlining operations.Thecompanyhasbroadenedits eQs oluTionsP ushes Thee nveloPe assortmentofsophisticatedmaterial What trends does the Equipmenthandling products that it rents, rather Depot executive envision in the nextthan simply sells, according to Larson. generation of heavy lift trucks? LarsonOur recent investments in high-capac-sees interest in alternative fuel sourcesity forklifts capable of lifting 20,000 growingoverthenextseveralyears,poundsalongwithelectricpowered pushingOEMstoincorporatenewwarehouse equipment such as powered technologiesandfeaturesintotheirpallet jacks, sit down/stand-up forklifts product lineups.to very narrow aisle turret trucks, has AskedifEquipmentDepotwillsignificantlyexpandedourcapabili-develop and sell or rent its own cur- ties to support the diversity within our rentorfuturegenerationofheavypartnershipbasewithrentalsthatdo lift trucks? Or is that too costly or annot require capital expenditures or pur-unwise deviation from its core busi- chases, he explains.ness?LarsonsaysthecompanyhasAsformaterialhandlingequip-investedinTier4dieselpoweredment the company distributes and theDaimler Truck Mexico in Santiago, Mexico delivered the first of two battery-powered all-electric high-capacity forklifts to support ourprograms EQSolutions create becomeClass 8 Freightliner eCascadias to Transportes M. Esteban of Segovia, Mexico. valued customers and will continuemore technologically advanced, safety(ELECTRIFYcontinued from page 10) truckhandlingcontainerizedcargo todoso.However,itmayconsiderinthewarehouseandexternallyhasdestined to or originating from a regu-investing in electric units in the future.becomeagreaterpriority,LarsonC hallenges To Theg rid lated port or railyard traveling to and Meanwhile,thecompanyisemphasizes.OurteammembersareSo,itisnotsurprisingtheCTAfrom a regulated port or railyard and already working on the next genera- highlyfocusedoncreatinginasafeexecutive is concerned that San Diegofrom the manufacturing center in Baja tionaladvancementsinwarehouseworkenvironment.Ourservicetech- Gas & Electrics (SDG&E) facility inwill need to comply, even if the fleet optimization,LarsontellsAmeri- niciansarerequiredtoperformjob- OtayMesasdoesnothaveenoughhas just a single truck via the drayage can Journal of Transportation. Oursite assessments prior to making anyelectricity on its grid to power poten- truckrequirementsintheAdvance EQSolutionsisallaboutpushingneeded repairs. If a situation is deemedtial new influx of electric trucks thatCleanFleetregulation,Shimoda thatenvelope.Thinkmoreautoma- unsafe, they are empowered to initiatewill be based there.Is the utility plan- explained in an earlier interview with ning to expand its grid at the border?the AJOT.AmericanJournalofTransportatione leCTriCC lass8 sd eBuTtelephonedthecompanytoaskthat question and did not get an answer. Still, it appears that Mexicos ship- The challenge of accommodat- pers,consigneesandmotorcarriers ing heavy duty truck charging is notwill not be entirely shut out of lucrative uniquetoSDG&E,contendsShi- California-Mexico trade because they moda. Due to the capacity of the char- cannot comply with the CARB man-gers, major upgrades are required ondate if and when it is enforced.Daim-the utility side of the gridtransmis- ler Truck Mexico in Santiago, Mexico sion and distribution. These are longearlierthisyeardeliveredthefirst leadtime,extremelycostlyupgradesoftwobattery-poweredall-electric that are subject to an entirely separateClass 8 Freightliner eCascadias to its regulatory approval process at the Cal- customer, TransportesM.Estebanof ifornia Public Utilities Commission. Segovia, Mexico. Meantime,inanearlierinter- A Daimler spokesman in Mexico view with AJOT, he said he was notCity told the AJOT the two all-electric sure how much coordination has beenFreightlinerswereactuallymanu-donetodatebetweenCaliforniafacturedinPortland,Oregonand utilities and the state owned electrictheassignmentincludedanElectric utility in Mexico serving the borderIslandchargingstationatSantiago Equipment Depot offers the most innovative and respected brands including CAT lift trucks,wheretruckchargingstationsaredesignatedforusebyTransportes Mitsubishi forklift trucks and Jungheinrich intralogistics, while providing new and used forklifts,needed but do not exist. Several yearsEstabansFreightliners.TheElec-aerial lifts, service, parts, equipment rentals, financing and automation solutions. ago,FranciscoRubioRangel,presi- tric Island, one of two charging sta-dentofTijuanasElectricityCom- tionsbuilt,hasacapacityofupto tion, smarter robotics and deeper dataan SWA or stop work authority. mission, told a reporter with Border120KW, capable of charging up to 80 insights.WereinthetrencheswithCrossing, that the regions economicpercent of the electric trucks battery our customers helping them level upP roduCT -C enTriCs afeTy future will be in doubt if nothing isin220minutes.TheDaimlerTruck withthelatesttechlikeAutomatedThe same intense focus on safetydone to expand the power grid in thespokesman said the all-electric zero-MobileRobots(AMR),Goodstois carried over to providing productsregion.We are about 600 megawattsemissionFreightlinereCascadiais Person (GTP) systems, industry lead- that help create a safer working envi- short. If we dont solve this problem,well-proven and has been delivered to ing intelligent conveyor systems andronmentforendusers,Larsontoldyou are going to see supply dry up.over 50 fleets in North America.warehousesoftware,allaimedatthe American Journal of Transporta- There are many unanswered ques- WhilemanufacturerDaimler crankingupoperationalefficiency,tion, The majority of the high-capac- tions triggered by the electronic truckTruckmaintainsithasputthefirst slashing costs and boosting scalabil- ityforkliftsandcontainerhandlingmandate, particularly on the Mexicotwo-all-electrictrucksontheroad ity.Werenotjustthrowingtechatequipmentwehaveintroducedintoside of the border which has only ain Mexico, a large Otay Mesa-based the wall and seeing what sticks. Werethemarketplaceareequippedwithfew EV trucking big rigs on its roadsmotor carrier with 400 trucks, is not crafting custom solutions that fit rightstandardsafetyfeaturesthatotherandnonetworkofpublicchargingwaiting to see how the Zero Emission into the clients unique needs, prep- manufacturersconsideroptional stations. Mexican-owned motor carri- Vehicle mandate works out. Juan Baez, ping their operations to tackle futurebackupcameras,pedestriandetec- ers would clearly be impacted.Any(ELECTRIFYcontinued on page 26)challenges head on.tion, and roll over protection systems Specifically,EQSolutionssoundsandweightandheightindicatorsto morelikeanR&Dlogisticslabyouname a few.might find in Silicon Valley, not in aLarsons colleague, Jeremy Rock, multi-outletbrickandmortarnation- regional vice president, of Equipment wideequipmentdistributionorga- Depots South Region, and a special-nization.ItsAutomatedStorageandist in warehouse design and productiv-Retrieval Systems digitize pallet move- ity, says the company has zeroed in on ment to enhance storage efficiency andembracingandadoptingautomation retrieval speed. GTP Systems stream- technologiesthatenhanceefficiency, lineorderpickingbybringingitemsspeedandsafety.Facingdifficulties directly to warehouse workers, boost- in finding, hiring and retaining labor ing speed and accuracy. today, combined with a growing short-EQSolutionsportfolioofcus- age of warehouse space owing to the tomer-centric programs, adds Larson, alsosurgeine-commercetoday.Rock includesAutonomousMobileRobotssays that collaborative robotics or co-(AMRs)thatdynamicallynavigatebots are joining the workforce.warehouses, optimizing picking and sort- Ashe describes their automated ing processes, while its Intelligent Con- contributions,theyworkalongside veyor Systems automate the movement(CURVEcontinued on page 26) Charging station at Santiago designated for use by Transportes Estabans Freightliners.'