Zgraggen Transport using electric milk tanker developed by Designwerk

The Winterthur-based firm Designwerk has put the first fully electric milk tanker onto Swiss roads. “By operating Switzerland’s first electric milk tanker, we are really setting a trend”, comments Elias Zgraggen, Managing Director of Zgraggen Transport AG, in a press release issued by Designwerk. “In this way, our work in the local area is carried out emissions-free and we are making a vital contribution to low-emissions mobility”, he adds. By moving away from diesel as a fuel, the company based in the canton of Uri looks set to save approximately 93 tons of CO2 per year, according to the information in the press release.

The vehicle has been in use for a few weeks already and covers around 330 kilometers per day, before heading back to the milk collection stations of the dairy processing firm Emmi in in Dagmersellen or Emmen, both of which are in the canton of Lucerne. At the Zgraggen site in Schattdorf in the canton of Uri, the vehicle is recharged using energy obtained from the company’s own solar and wood gasification plant. The company operates two further electric trucks in the form of a pair of HIGH CAB Semi 6x2T articulated lorries, which were likewise developed by Designwerk.

The technical specifications of the electric milk truck “are unique on the market to date”, the press release states. For this weight-critical application, the lightweight, fixed-gear drive really comes into its own. The battery capacity of 510 kilowatt hours offers a range of between 250 and 300 kilometers. The entire structure of the vehicle is also electrically operated. As Designwerk underlines, the flexibility with regard to where the high-voltage batteries are placed in its vehicles ensures a range of other similar applications. ce/mm