Johannes Drexler, Peter Mertes logistics manager, Thomas May, Still branch manager and Ralf Lellig, Sales Consultant

Germany's largest winery is taking its environmental commitment seriously with its use of a new energy-saving feature from Still.

Peter Mertes is the first European company to use the Still RX 20-16 electric forklift with the energy-saving feature, Blue-Q. Blue-Q is activated by pressing the blue button on the control panel and reduces energy consumption by up to 20%.

Johannes Drexler, logistics manager for Peter Mertes, says the company sees its responsibility for the environment as important. "Wine is a purely natural product that depends on a clean environment. This is why our company is open to new concepts to save energy. Blue-Q is an exact fit to our company philosophy."

The Blue-Q is an 'intelligent' system that can determine when certain features are required by the forklift and will optimise these features to save energy. If the driver is reversing the forklift and only needs the rear lights on, the Blue-Q will turn off the front spotlights, the driving lights or the heater to conserve power.

Drexler compares the Blue-Q to an autopilot: "No-one can expect the (forklift) drivers to think of how to save energy all the time. With the Blue-Q, we are saving energy and have high performance at the same time."

Peter Mertes has a fleet of 50 counterbalance forklifts and other pieces of warehouse equipment working up to three shifts a day. Drexler says each truck operates for 3,000 hours each year. "On an average day, 1,000 tonnes of finished goods will be loaded and 17 million units of stock are turned over every month. This means the drivers have to work fast."

The winery has been following a sustainable energy plan in respect to its filling, storage and internal transport processes and the use of the Blue-Q in conjunction with its goods management and ERP system saves energy and cuts down CO2 emissions.