The potential to reduce unladen weight and improve fuel efficiency has led temperature-controlled transport specialist P&C Hamilton to receive its first Vector™1550 unit from Carrier Transicold UK. Carrier Transicold helps improve global transport and shipping temperature control with a complete line of equipment for refrigerated trucks, trailers and containers, and is a part of UTC Climate, Controls & Security, a unit of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX).

Girvan-based P&C Hamilton currently operates 80 per cent of its fleet with Vector technology and the company was keen to keep what it describes as “a winning formula,” with plans to add more Vector 1550 units to its fleet later this year.

“High-quality equipment is the mark of a professional and reliable company and that’s what we stand for,” said Phillip Hamilton, partner, P&C Hamilton. “Carrier Transicold has led the way in modern transport refrigeration technology, particularly with all-electric Vector technology, which continues to work well for us. We see the Vector 1550 unit as a natural step forward as we look to further reduce fuel consumption.

“This unit is one of the lightest trailer refrigeration systems on the market and allows us to reduce the unladen weight of the trailer. This means we can maximise the volume of goods carried, which is a clear advantage,” Hamilton added.

The Vector 1550 unit builds on the success of the powerful Vector 1850 unit by combining a smaller capacity of 14,800 watts with low fuel consumption. This makes it perfectly suited to P&C Hamilton’s mono-temperature operations, which transports temperature-sensitive goods throughout the UK and mainland Europe.

The refrigeration unit is mounted to a bespoke Gray & Adams tri-axle trailer that contains Euro Rails to allow for the transportation of raw meat and carcasses, a feature particularly favoured by retail and wholesale customers in Germany.

“Being able to operate across EU borders is a necessity for this trailer, so we specified it to meet the Class C ATP standard to operate with a set point between +12 and 20 degrees Celsius,” added Hamilton.

The Vector 1550 unit’s smaller, 1.5 litre diesel engine delivers optimised energy consumption by using the patented combination of a hermetic compressor with an economiser. The lower fuel consumption reduces the Vector 1550 unit’s overall carbon impact by up to 35 per cent compared to conventional systems, the equivalent of removing 2.8 tonnes of CO2 per unit per year.

P&C Hamilton operates a fleet composed of 20 trucks and 24 trailers. Last November, the company was voted Top Chilled Distribution Company 2012 at the prestigious Transport News Scottish Rewards.