Three Japanese auto and manufacturing players are forging a partnership to assemble an all Japanese refrigerated van as they vie for a stake in the growing cold chain industry in the Philippines.
The partnership is among Japanese firms Centro Nippon Fruehauf Cooltech (CFCI), Denso, and Hino Motors Philippines (HMP).
Under the plan, a Hino 300 series light truck will be mounted either on a 10 or 11-footer Japanese Cooltech ref van body from Centro Nippon Fruehauf (CFCI). The cooling power will be provided by a Japanese Denso DS2 cooling system, which will supply the need for a chilled or frozen cargo condition.
The finish product will be called the Hino 300 ref van. The aim is to provide the transport solution from the first and up to the last mile delivery segments of the cold chain industry, the group said in a statement.
The partnership was born at the recent Cold Chain Logistics Workshop between the Philippines and Japan.
At the work, Cold Chain Association of the Philippines President Anthony Dizon showed that the cold chain industry is projected to grow to 550,000 pallet positions this year. The domestic cold chain industry is expected to grow 10 percent.
“And we see the need nationwide for ref vans to transport goods from the farm or piers, to the cold storage facilities, then to the processing plants, then back to the cold storage facilities for its last-mile delivery to the retail outlets,” said Dizon.
Hiroki Senoo, vice president for business planning division of Hino Motors Philippines (HMP), cited the outstanding features of Hino 300 ref van calling it a game changer in the cold chain industry. “It will fill the need for a reliable ref van and its durability and uncompromising quality will be backed by Hino’s one-stop solution where servicing of the ref system and body can also be done at any Hino dealership nationwide. That will make after sales service very convenient,” Senoo said.
HMP Vice President for Sales Division Oliver dela Cruz said the Hino 300 ref van is expected to change the country’s trucking and logistics landscape. “With the tough and tested Hino 300 light truck as platform in combination with a Denso cooling unit and Cooltech ref van body, it is designed to take on the rough and challenging terrains in the countryside. Customers can thus look forward to what is probably the best in Japanese technology in a ref van,” he said.
For its cooling power, Denso has its highly reliable DS2 ref system which Mr.
Masahiko Tanaka, unit head of Denso’s Sales unit said, its DS2 ref system has been proven to perform efficiently at lower operating cost. “It can handle the cargoes at the temperature desired by the customer whether in chilled or frozen condition. On top of that, it is environmentally friendly based on the materials and refrigerant used. We have engineered it to work well with the Hino 300 light truck and the Cooltech ref van body and deliver outstanding performance expected of an all-Japan product,” he said.
The Cooltech ref van body uses extruded polystyrene which is a less water-absorptive insulating material.
CFCI Production Manager Edd Nieva explained that the production of the insulated sandwich panels and subsequent assembly of ref vans utilizes Japanese technology, process and stringent quality control standards.
“The Cooltech ref van body is engineered to fuse perfectly well with the Japanese Hino 300 light truck and the Japanese Denso ref system to come up with a reliable all-Japan ref van. It is the perfect fusion among a tough, durable truck muscle, a cost- efficient cooling unit and a high-quality ref van body,” he said.