Electric tow tractors powered by EnerSys
March 1st 2011 Vehicle manufacturer General
Motors has saved energy, improved
productivity and optimised line side
delivery operations at its Astra plant
in Ellesmere Port by switching to
electric tow tractors powered by
Hawker batteries from EnerSys.
The introduction of the new
tractors to replace gas-powered
units also reduced vehicle
movements in production and
storage areas.
"We can use the new tractors
right through the shift to deliver
parts to the production line without
any disruption to the operations,"
says Richie Mellor, senior engineer
at the Worldwide Facilities Group,
GMM Ellesmere Port Plant. EnerSys
and the tractor manufacturer have
supplied us with a complete package
that met our specification, delivered
operational benefits and a number
of savings.
The Ellesmere Port plant
manufactures Astra cars and vans
and employs more than 2000 people
on the 130 acre site. This operation
incorporates a number of processes
that require just-in-time delivery of
components and assemblies direct
to the line side. Parts are handled on
special trolleys and carts which until
2008 were towed by LPG powered
tractors. A major drawback was that
these tractors had to unhitch from
the trolleys and leave the
production building and visit
outdoor gas bottle stores whenever
they needed refuelling. This
generally occurred once every shift
which was time consuming and
could disrupt the smooth operation
of the production line. The tractors
were noisy and had suffered from
reliability problems.
As part of its ongoing investment
programme the site identified
benefits and savings it could achieve
by switching to electric powered
tractors operating continuously
throughout the shift. It approached
a number of potential suppliers and,
after testing equipment on site for a
year, decided on a combination of
25 Linde P602 tow tractors and
Hawker batteries with Hawker
LifeSpeed high speed chargers. More articles from Enersys Ltd: | 
