Thermo King Advancer, its unique design reduces fuel consumption by up to 30% with an up to 40% quicker pull-down – a new benchmark in trailer refrigeration.
Thermo King, represented in Ireland by Ballinlough Refrigeration, took home the first place in the ‘Smart Trailer’ category of the Trailer Innovation 2021 awards.
The jury of 16 renowned European transport magazines recognised Thermo King for its Advancer A-Series, an iconic reimagining of the trailer refrigeration unit. The new Advancer A-Series is an all-new design architecture creating a bold new standard for performance, temperature control, and fleet connectivity.
“We asked customers what they needed to work better, win more business, and cut their cost of operation,” David O’Gorman, senior product manager, Thermo King.
A NEW LANDMARK IN TRAILER REFRIGERATION
Testing for the Advancer was conducted in real-life conditions with comparison tests against Thermo King’s existing unit and competitive refrigeration units. The tests showed that the Advancer is up to 40% quicker to pull down and up to 30% more fuel-efficient than the market average.
“Our field trial units travelled over 1 million kilometres across different climate zones and counted tens of thousands of running hours in diesel and electric modes,” said David O’Gorman, senior product manager, Thermo King. “They have crossed deserts, operated at high altitudes, travelled on ferries to cross the seas and on trains for intermodal operations. Throughout the tests, the Advancer units proved to be trouble free.”
The Thermo King Advancer unique design is built to reduce fuel consumption by up to 30%. This is due to a completely new design drive. The energy is converted into 48 volt DC, and the engine operation is electronically controlled, allowing full and independent regulation of the cooling power and the fan speed.
The number of parts needed using 48 Volt DC is 38% smaller than the existing Thermo King units. At the same time the number of connections for the refrigerant has been reduced by 33%. In practice this is estimated to produce 60% fewer potential failures and 30% faster servicing. Adding photovoltaic panels to the top of the Advancer, removes any concern about the battery’s condition.
Advance testing
Thirty Advancer prototypes were submitted for testing. They ran for many companies from South Africa, Australia and Scandinavia, among others. One of the prototypes also found its way to the Hollex Transport company near Lublin, which specializes in transport between Europe and Western and Central Asia.
As these tests showed, on an average of 80% of the time, Thermo King Advancer cooling engine performed with minimal fuel consumed and much less noise disturbing the driver. The fans, however, could still turn at full speed.
Thermo King confidently declares that it is the first company on the market to offer this way of operating. An additional advantage is the possibility of extremely quickly lowering the trailer’s temperature 40% faster than with previous units.
What does this mean in real-world operation?
For example, if we were carrying bananas, the load needs a lot of airflow to stay fresh for as long as possible. However, bananas do not need a very low temperature so the cooling capacity does not have to be high. We need fast-spinning fans, but the cooling motor can run at low speed.
Another example is the transportation of ice cream. The air exchange can be small but a high cooling capacity is required. The fans may therefore slow down for ice-cream, but the cooling motor should speed up more often.
And this may also be the case with the third situation, i.e. the moment of unloading. When the trailer door is opened, the unit must cool with great power and blow large amounts of air. Both the fans and the cooling motor run at high speed.
Intelligence you can rely on
Thermo King promises that the lower fuel consumption will compensate for the higher price in approximately 24 months – a two-year subscription to a new telematics system given to you completely free of charge. This new system will provide full information on all operating parameters, including the instantaneous and average fuel consumption of a given route and recommended ‘next best action’.
Advancing our sustainability commitments
Not only does Advancer deliver performance for our customers, but it also proudly pushes us forward on the sustainability commitments of Trane Technologies.
On-the-road and in-use, the new product results in a 30% reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions than those of previous units – contributing significantly to the Trane Technologies’ Gigaton Challenge.
And it doesn’t stop there. Advancer also provides sustainability gains in production – the manufacturing process for the product uses 60% less energy than for our current trailer units. Combined and converted into numbers of trees planted, this equates to 50 trees planted for every unit every year.
Refrigeration Service and Repairs. Any make or model, we’ll get you back on the road fast.
