LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa.,
April 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Air Products (NYSE: APD) today announced that its hydrogen fueling
technology for the material handling market is being installed at
the Sarasota, Florida distribution
center of United Natural Foods, Inc. (Nasdaq: UNFI). Air
Products' technology will fuel 65 fuel cell powered lift trucks
that will be mobilized at the distribution facility moving consumer
goods on a daily basis. The equipment for the 352,000
square-foot Sarasota facility,
which serves as a regional distribution hub for customers in
Southeastern United States, is
targeted to be operational by the end of June 2010.
"It is exciting and understandable that UNFI has made this
conversion decision to hydrogen powered material handling
equipment. Air Products' portfolio in this market includes
multiple installations around the United
States fueling over 300 material handling units. We
have heard a lot of positive comments from our customers, the users
of this new technology who are realizing the benefits of the
hydrogen economy in this application," said Mike Doud, business development manager for
Hydrogen Energy Systems at Air Products.
Air Products will supply the hydrogen as well as its
compression, storage and two indoor hydrogen dispensing units.
UNFI will add 29 new hydrogen fuel cell-powered lift trucks
to its fleet and 36 existing lift trucks will be retrofitted to
hydrogen fuel cell technology. Details on Air Products'
hydrogen fueling station technologies are provided at
www.airproducts.com/h2energy.
UNFI looked to this initiative to replace lead acid batteries
and their associated charging equipment with hydrogen fuel cells as
part of its culture of social responsibility and its commitment to
using clean energy, as well as to improve efficiency, productivity
and reliability. "We consider environmental stewardship an
essential component in every facet of our business. This
hydrogen fuel cell project extends our commitment as an
environmentally-conscious organization," commented Steven Spinner, UNFI's President and Chief
Executive Officer.
As background, a hydrogen fuel cell produces energy by combining
hydrogen and oxygen in an electrochemical reaction that yields
electricity, heat and water. Hydrogen is non-toxic,
non-poisonous, the lightest of all gases, and the most abundant
element in the universe. By converting UNFI's Sarasota lift truck fleet to hydrogen fuel
cells, the company expects carbon emissions will be reduced by
approximately 132 metric tons annually, an amount equivalent to the
annual emissions of 35 automobiles.
Tom Dziki, UNFI's senior vice
president of Sustainable Development, commented, "Hydrogen fuel
cells not only provide greater productivity and lower operating
costs, but will be an important component of a clean energy future.
Once implemented, this fuel cell project is expected to
create annual energy savings of approximately 640,000 kilowatt
hours."
There are many advantages to using hydrogen powered forklifts
and other material handling equipment. Hydrogen fuel
cell-powered equipment needs refueling once or twice daily,
depending on use. In contrast, traditional battery-powered
equipment must be placed temporarily out of operation for battery
replacement and required battery recharging approximately every
four to six hours. Hydrogen fuel cell-powered equipment
provides consistent power strength during use and does not
experience decreased performance or wear down as traditional
lead-acid battery units do as they near a required battery change
out or recharge time. Additionally, hydrogen fuel cell
forklifts are not adversely impacted by temperature or by operating
in coolers and freezers, in comparison to traditional battery
performance. Further, hydrogen-powered fuel cell equipment is
more environmentally friendly because it does not involve lead-acid
battery storage and disposal issues.
Air Products' hydrogen fueling technology is currently being
used to fuel over 300 material handling vehicles including: fuel
cell powered pallet trucks at Wegmans Retail Service Center in
Pottsville, Pa.; fuel cell powered
lift trucks at Central Grocers' new distribution center in
Joliet, Ill.; hydrogen fuel cell
powered forklifts at Nestle Waters North America in Dallas, Tex.; hydrogen fuel cell powered
forklifts at the Defense Distribution Depot Susquehanna
Pennsylvania in New Cumberland,
Pa.; as well as hydrogen fuel cell powered forklifts at
several other customers in the United
States. In addition, mobile fueling equipment unique
and patented by Air Products has been and continues to be deployed
to a variety of customers for the purpose of demonstrating the
technology in real world conditions.
Air Products, the leading hydrogen supplier to refineries to
assist in making cleaner burning transportation fuels, has unique
experience in the hydrogen fueling industry. In fact, in certain
market applications, fueling rates of over 10,000 refills per year
are occurring. These applications provide an opportunity to assess
consumer experiences, evaluate product performance and to advance
product improvements. The company has placed over 110
hydrogen fueling stations in the United
States and 18 countries worldwide. Cars, trucks, vans,
buses, scooters, forklifts, locomotives, planes, other material
handling equipment, and even submarines have been fueled with this
trend-setting technology that involves Air Products' know-how,
equipment, and hydrogen. Use of the company's technology is
increasing and is currently at 175,000 hydrogen fills per
year.
Air Products has more than 50 years of hydrogen experience and
is on the forefront of hydrogen energy technology development. Air
Products has an extensive patent portfolio with over 50 patents in
hydrogen dispensing technology. Air Products provides liquid
and gaseous hydrogen, and HCNG (hydrogen/compressed natural gas)
fueling, and has developed a variety of enabling devices and
protocols for fuel dispensing at varied pressures. Hydrogen
for these stations is delivered to a site via truck, produced by
natural gas reformation, biomass conversion, or by electrolysis,
including electrolysis that is solar and wind driven.
About Air Products
Air Products (NYSE: APD) serves customers in industrial, energy,
technology and healthcare markets worldwide with a unique portfolio
of atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, performance
materials, and equipment and services. Founded in 1940,
Air Products has built leading positions in key growth markets
such as semiconductor materials, refinery hydrogen, home healthcare
services, natural gas liquefaction, and advanced coatings and
adhesives. The company is recognized for its innovative culture,
operational excellence and commitment to safety and the
environment. In fiscal 2009, Air Products had revenues of
$8.3 billion, operations in over 40
countries, and 18,900 employees around the globe. For more
information, visit www.airproducts.com.
***NOTE: This release may contain forward-looking statements.
Actual results could vary materially, due to changes in current
expectations.
About UNFI
United Natural Foods, Inc. (http://www.unfi.com/) carries and
distributes more than 60,000 products to more than 17,000 customer
locations nationwide. The Company serves a wide variety of retail
formats including conventional supermarket chains, natural product
superstores, independent retail operators and the food service
channel. United Natural Foods, Inc. was ranked by Forbes in 2005 as
one of the "Best Managed Companies in America," ranked by Fortune
in 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2010 as one of its "Most Admired
Companies," winner of the Supermarket News 2008 Sustainability
Excellence Award, and recognized by the Nutrition Business Journal
for its 2009 Environment and Sustainability Award.
"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release
regarding United Natural Foods business that are not historical
facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and
uncertainties and are based on current expectations and management
estimates; actual results may differ materially. The risks and
uncertainties which could impact these statements are described in
the Company's filings under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, including its annual report on Form 10-K filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission on September 30, 2009 and its quarterly reports on
Form 10-Q filed thereafter, and include, but are not limited to,
the Company's dependence on principal customers; the Company's
sensitivity to general economic conditions, including the current
economic environment, changes in disposable income levels and
consumer spending trends; increased fuel costs; the Company's
sensitivity to inflationary pressures; the relatively low margins
and economic sensitivity of the Company's business; the ability to
identify and successfully complete acquisitions of other natural,
organic and specialty food and related product distributors; and
management's allocation of capital and the timing of capital
expenditures. Any forward-looking statements are made pursuant to
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and, as such,
speak only as of the date made. The Company is not undertaking to
update any information in the foregoing reports until the effective
date of its future reports required by applicable laws. Any
projections of future results of operations are based on a number
of assumptions, many of which are outside the Company's control and
should not be construed in any manner as a guarantee that such
results will in fact occur. These projections are subject to change
and could differ materially from final reported results. The
Company may from time to time update these publicly announced
projections, but it is not obligated to do so.
SOURCE Air Products