With over 75 years’ experience supplying LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) in the UK, Calor has built a strong reputation for reliable energy supply, serving homes and businesses beyond the reach of the gas mains, as well as those operating forklift trucks.
The key driver for Calor’s longstanding position as market leader is without doubt the company’s commitment to its customers. Calor takes pride in its excellent customer service, and the highest levels of quality are pursued throughout the organisation. In more recent years, continuous investment and a forward thinking culture have led Calor to expand and optimise its service offering for new and existing customers.
In the forklift truck world, a host of benefits over electric and diesel trucks have led more and more operators to consider Calor LPG as the forklift fuel of choice. When the time comes to purchase or hire a new vehicle, there are many compelling reasons to choose one powered by Calor LPG.
For example, Calor LPG offers customers the opportunity to increase efficiency and reduce emissions from day one. Recent independent tests at Millbrook Proving Ground found that forklifts running on Calor LPG produce a staggering 98% less particulate matter** and 23% less carbon dioxide* than diesel forklifts, when lifting a 1-tonne load.
One benefit of this reduced particulate matter is that Calor LPG forklifts cause no soot marks or tainting of goods inside the warehouse. Whereas diesel forklifts are often too dirty to use inside, LPG powered counterbalanced trucks can be used both inside and out, with no risk of tarnished products. The difference in the two fuels’ emissions was visibly demonstrated in the Millbrook testing, where filter pads were placed over the trucks’ exhaust pipes. Heavy soot was deposited on the diesel filters, while there was hardly any trace on the Calor LPG filters**.
Calor LPG fuelled forklifts are also quieter than diesel trucks; the Millbrook tests found that Calor LPG reduces forklift truck noise by up to ten decibels***. This is of particular benefit to sites where forklifts are used during the night, and it improves working conditions for the operators themselves.
It may come as a surprise, but Calor LPG trucks can also out-perform electric powered models, functioning well on uneven surfaces and difficult terrain – both of which often present challenges for electric powered forklifts. In addition, using Calor LPG can reduce refuelling downtime. Refuelling with LPG is quick and easy, since no time is wasted recharging batteries. For businesses operating a large fleet of trucks, this can amount to a significant amount of operator time saved. Calor LPG customers can also, where appropriate, benefit from the installation of a bulk tank, so trucks can be refuelled via a pump and nozzle, similar to road vehicles. Larger capacity fixed fuel tanks can then be fitted to the truck, thus further reducing refuelling downtime. Calor offers an alternative to traditional 29 litre refillable cylinders in the form of 55 or 70 litre capacity fixed fuel tanks.
Calor’s market leading position also drives investments that help to give customers a complete and hassle-free service, with innovations to improve forklift cylinders implemented with the customer in mind. For example, Calor’s unique Magnatract® technology, found inside every Calor forklift cylinder, reduces the risk of metal particles blocking the valve and affecting the fuel supply or engine. Meanwhile, the cylinder dip tubes that take Calor LPG to the truck’s engine are made from ‘memory plastic’, instead of the traditional metal dip tubes. This feature can further help reduce the risk of metal fragments entering the fuel supply.
Equally, all new Calor customers are offered free forklift refuelling health and safety training, which is accredited by the RTITB – the UK’s largest HSE approved forklift truck training body. For maintenance, servicing and repair work, there is CalorForce – the UK’s largest team of dedicated LPG engineers.
What’s more, Calor LPG’s lower level of CO? emissions compared to diesel, electricity and oil* makes it a more environmentally sensitive fuel. To build upon this, Calor has taken further steps to become greener as a company. These efforts have been rewarded with the Carbon Trust Standard – a mark of excellence awarded in recognition of a company measuring, managing and reducing its carbon emissions.
Finally, Calor was the first corporate supporter of the Woodland Trust’s MOREwoods scheme – a project aimed at increasing native woodland in the UK by planting 500,000 trees a year on private and public land. To date, Calor has donated £300,000, which will see 50,000 trees planted, making a positive change to the environment, and countless communities in the UK.
In sum, Calor’s wealth of experience, expertise and innovation offers businesses across the UK peace of mind, as well as the potential for reduced energy costs and emissions.
* Source: SAP 2009 – http://www.bre.co.uk/sap2009/
** Results confirmed during testing at Millbrook Proving Ground, October 2010, Report No. MBK 10/1034
*** Results confirmed during testing at Millbrook Proving Ground, August 2010, Report No. MBK 10/1442
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