United Natural Foods Inc (UNFI) plans to install GenDrive-brand hydrogen fuel cell technology from Plug Power Inc at a Sarasota distribution centre by June.

The nationwide food distributor plans to have Abel Womack Inc retrofit 36 existing pallet jacks with an average age of two-and-a-half years and supply 29 new Raymond units, possibly including model 8400 walkie riders, model 7400 reach-fork trucks, model 5500 order picker trucks and model 4200 standup counterbalance trucks, according to Tom Dziki, UNFI senior vice president of sustainable development. Unit selection is under way.

Abel Womack is a major Northeast distributor of Raymond Corp materials handling equipment and services through facilities in Lawrence, Massachusetts; Wallingford, Connecticut; and Farmingdale, New York.

"Sarasota is the first (UNFI) distribution centre that will utilise this technology," Dziki says. "(In the) longer term, if the technology is successful, we will consider adopting hydrogen fuel cell technology at other facilities."

Publicly traded UNFI of Providence, Rhode Island distributes more than 60,000 products to 17,000 customer locations.

UNFI opted to start with Sarasota because of "the leadership position the State of Florida has taken with regard to support of alternative fuels", he notes.

Also, several of the existing pallet jacks in Sarasota have 2 inch (5.3cm) battery compartments "which are necessary for the fuel cell stacks". Dziki says. "We augmented our inventory for those that had 18 inch (45cm) battery compartments with new purchases."

UNFI expects in Sarasota to reduce annual carbon emissions by an amount equivalent to the emissions of 35 automobiles and achieve annual energy savings of approximately 640,000 kilowatt hours.

"This project is a natural extension of our strategy to create an environmentally and socially responsible environment in all the communities we serve," Dziki says. "Hydrogen fuel cells not only provide greater productivity and lower operating costs but will be an important component of a clean energy future, and we are happy to be pioneering the use of this technology in Florida. Once implemented, this fuel cell project is expected to create annual energy savings of approximately 640,000 kilowatt hours."

The Sarasota facility employs 160 associates, occupies 352,000 square feet (31,680 sqm) and serves as a regional distribution hub for customers in the south eastern US.

In addition to Plug Power and Abel Womack, UNFI is partnering with Air Products and Chemicals Inc to implement the roll-out.