IKEA Testing Renault And MAN EVs
IKEA tests new EV prototypes before massive orders because it requires specific boxes.
IKEA is testing all-electric commercial delivery vans as part of its zero-emission commitment. The company recently completed two rounds of tests of new EV prototypes (from Renault and MAN, conducted separately in Paris and Berlin) for last-mile delivery.
In 2018, IKEA announced that by 2025, it intends to switch to 100% electric home deliveries to customers in all its 30 countries.
We are not sure how advanced the preparations are, but potentially the company might soon order hundreds or thousands of EVs globally.
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According to IKEA, the existing electric last-mile solutions "are not optimized for the needs of the furniture retailer as parcel sizes require larger vehicle dimensions", which means that the company has difficulties choosing the right van.
"The tests have been done with up to 20m3 box body trucks that enables the company to load its orders with full carton pallets specific to IKEA. This way of working means faster loading as well as minimising the number of vehicles on the streets by fully utilising the space of each truck. Finally, the new prototypes have the range to reach most of IKEA city customers from its stores and logistics units."
We assume that once the manufacturers will come up with the right box body, the electrification will move forward.
Raphael Guillard, Customer Fulfilment Strategic Sourcing Leader at IKEA Retail (Ingka Group) said:
“The right type and supply of EVs for last mile delivery was not available. The test with Renault and MAN gave us a real option where the reality meets our expectations. We need vehicles with optimized use of the truck capacity, to not only secure cost, but also to avoid further traffic congestion in major cities,”
The models of Renault and MAN were not mentioned, but the two offers already:
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