Big Y Aims to Improve Refrigerated Grocery Distribution

Seeking to improve its fleet logistics, Big Y—one of New England’s largest independently owned supermarket chains—has initiated the replacement of two-thirds of its 70 refrigerated trailers with a more sustainable solution. The new trailers are equipped with Carrier Transicold X4 7300 refrigeration units and the eSolutions platform for remote monitoring and control.

The Springfield, Mass.-based Big Y has begun replacing its 70 refrigerated trailers through Ryder System Inc., with Carrier Transicold of Southern New England (CTSNE), which is providing the refrigeration units and telematics support.

The eSolutions platform provides continuous visibility of Big Y’s cold chain assets via a centralized data stream that shows trailer temperatures, location and movement, says the company. The platform also enables remote control of refrigeration units.

“We have a very robust program for monitoring temperatures and conducting food safety checks,” said Steve Creed, VP of logistics and distribution for Big Y, in a statement. “The Carrier Transicold telematics system is an important contributor to that initiative.”

In addition to monitoring trailer temperature, the eSolutions platform provides notifications as trailers come and go from geofenced areas assigned to Big Y’s distribution center and key locations within its retail network; locates unused or underused trailer assets, including those dropped by Big Y’s third-party logistics provider at vendor partners, where they may be idle for a few days until loaded; and monitors trailer precooling time to minimize fuel waste, says the company.

The eSolutions platform further optimizes refrigeration unit performance for fuel efficiency and product protection; helps avoid emergency call-out situations where a refrigeration unit must be reprimed because it ran out of fuel; includes fuel level monitoring sensors that enable dispatchers to receive low-fuel alerts via eSolutions (units also can be programmed to automatically shut down before running out of fuel); and improves refrigeration unit uptime through use of continuous analytic and diagnostic information provided about unit performance, as well as immediate alerts if a warning condition occurs on a unit in service.

Within Big Y’s expansive service footprint, the refrigerated trailers serve more than 70 supermarkets and 12 convenience marts throughout New England. The eSolutions system’s ability to improve energy efficiency is critical to Carrier’s progress in reducing its customers’ carbon footprint by more than one gigaton, while also achieving carbon neutral operations by 2030, as outlined in its ambitious Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Goals, says the company.

Part of the Carrier Global Corporation, Carrier Transicold offers a complete line of equipment and services for refrigerated transport and cold chain visibility. For more than 50 years, the company has provided customers around the world with advanced, energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable container refrigeration systems and generator sets, direct-drive and diesel truck units, and trailer refrigeration systems.