Winners of the Eco Performance Award 2023 have been announced

The Eco Performance Awards 2023 were presented on May 8, 2023, under the motto “Innovations for Sustainable Road Freight Transport” in Munich. The winners in the individual categories were Grünfuchs Logistik GmbH (Start-Up), Kummen Kerzers AG (SME), and Seifert Logistics Group (Large Company), all recognized as Eco Performers 2023.

(St. Gallen/Munich) After a multi-stage application process between September 2022 and April 2023, the jury of the Eco Performance Award, chaired by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Stölzle, Director of the Institute for Supply Chain Management at the University of St. Gallen, selected three winners from six finalists. In addition to the three awarded companies, Grünfuchs, Kummen Kerzers, and Seifert Logistics Group, the Graz-based start-up s2 data & algorithms (Start-Up), Bächle Logistics from Villingen-Schwenningen (SME), and TransGgourmet Deutschland (Large Company) were nominated as finalists, all of which presented excellent concepts for greater sustainability in road freight transport. The festive award ceremony took place on the evening of May 8, 2023, accompanied by a dinner event at the Hotel Prinzregent in Munich. On the opening day of transport logistic, the winning concepts were pitched at the Transporeon booth during a press event.

The winners of the Eco Performance Awards 2023:

Grünfuchs Logistik – sustainable, local, and smart parcel delivery on the last mile

The Göttingen-based start-up Grünfuchs Logistik has taken on the challenge of handling parcel deliveries on the last mile in a fully sustainable manner while supporting local retailers in competing with large e-commerce platforms. Grünfuchs impresses with its innovation “made in Göttingen” through its high penetration rate in Göttingen – over 140 retailers are already connected to the platform and process parcel deliveries through the network. Before the EPA jury, Grünfuchs was able to prevail against the Graz-based start-up s2 data & algorithms and its software solution “Masterscheduler.”

The climate-neutral delivery of goods and services through the use of electric cargo bikes and intelligent route management, with comprehensively digitized and automated processes, convinced the jury. A success factor is the so-called “microhub,” a particularly space-efficient, automated sorting facility that allows for sorting large volumes of parcels in a confined space with very few staff – ideal for urban logistics. While the company is already well established in Göttingen, the concept is set to be expanded to other German cities this year. Unlike other concepts for urban logistics, Grünfuchs is far advanced in its implementation. The local anchoring in the Göttingen region also helps. The approach under the motto “local2local” offers the potential for locally anchored Grünfuchs companies to contribute to sustainable, local, and smart parcel delivery in other German cities.

Krummen Kerzers – Swiss e-truck pioneer with commercial world record journey across Europe

The Swiss logistics service provider Krummen Kerzers, focusing on national and international temperature-controlled transport of food and pharmaceutical products, prevailed in the category of small and medium-sized enterprises against Bächle Logistics from Villingen-Schwenningen. The Swiss convinced the jury with their consistently pursued and implementation-oriented sustainability strategy. Krummen Kerzers is the only Swiss transport company that has committed to the 1.5°C target of the Science Based Targets Initiative. Specifically, this means a CO2e reduction of 46% by 2030 compared to 2019.

Krummen Kerzers particularly impressed the jury with the world record set for the longest commercial journey of an e-truck in January 2023, a pioneering achievement and a unique selling point in the industry. From Zurich to Valencia and back, 20 tons of organic oranges were transported to Switzerland over a distance of more than 3,000 km – saving around 3 tons of CO2 compared to a journey with a diesel truck. Although the journey still involved significant planning effort, uncertainties, and an extended travel time of one day, it demonstrates that it is possible! Or as the company would put it, “Doing is like wanting. Just more intense.” For the EPA jury, the company is thus a pioneer in the use of e-trucks in long-distance freight transport. And the transformation continues: In the coming months, Krummen Kerzers will put additional e-trucks from the brands Volvo, Scania, and Designwerk into operation, aiming to have 18 fully electric tractors in its fleet by the end of this year.

Seifert Logistics Group – holistic sustainability strategy with foresight

The Seifert Logistics Group, based in Ulm and a previous winner of the Eco Performance Award in 2013, impressed the EPA jury ten years later with its comprehensive sustainability strategy, which is an integral part of the corporate strategy. This includes extensive measures for the three pillars of ecology, economy, and social responsibility, aligned with the mission to “sustainably improve the backbone of society – logistics.”

The visible flagship of the ongoing transformation is the sustainably designed construction of the new Ulm headquarters along the A8 in northern Ulm. In addition to technical innovations in warehouse logistics, such as the use of drones for inventory or intelligent lighting control systems, the Ulm headquarters offers the company the opportunity to rely on locally generated energy for the transition of its fleet to alternative drives through a photovoltaic system that can be expanded to up to 5.5 MWp. With the installation of the photovoltaic system, all 45 locations of Seifert Logistics will be able to be fully powered by self-generated electricity in the future. This year, Scope 2 emissions from electricity consumption are expected to decrease by 51%. Thanks to its own electricity production, the company is also working on implementing (green) hydrogen production to enable the use of hydrogen trucks. Seifert has committed to the 1.5°C target of the Science Based Targets Initiative last year and is currently in the validation process for recognition.

On the social transformation side, the jury was convinced by the comprehensive benefits offered to employees. The Seifert Logistics Group provides all employees at the headquarters with a modern office environment featuring ergonomic workstations in a spacious open-plan office, as well as a company-owned, free-to-use gym with a variety of course offerings. Culinary offerings at the company restaurant “Franzl” include a menu developed and subsidized in collaboration with nutrition consultants.

Outlook for the Eco Performance Award 2024

The jury is proud to have received a large number of high-quality applications for the Eco Performance Award again this year. The jury is already looking ahead to the upcoming edition in 2024, when the Eco Performance Award will enter its 16th round. All further information regarding the application modalities for 2024 will be published shortly on the award’s website. The application window for the Eco Performance Award 2024 will open in autumn 2023. A non-binding reservation of the date is already possible today at the following link on the homepage:
https://de.ecoperformanceaward.com/event-details/eco-performance-award-2024-1

More information about the Eco Performance Award can be found at https://de.ecoperformanceaward.com

Photo: © Eco Performance Award