1000th Jungheinrich ETV 216i goes to Italy

Two years ago, Jungheinrich presented the ETV 216i to the public for the first time. At that time, it was believed to be the world’s first truck with a novel lithium-ion battery concept. Now, Jungheinrich has dispatched the 1000th ETV 216i. In Italy, the Penny Market food chain relies entirely on lithium-ion technology this includes an entire fleet of the ETV 216i reach truck.

Penny Market is a supermarket chain owned by the German Rewe Group. The brand has more than 3000 stores in Europe, of which about 390 are located in Italy with seven distribution centres throughout the country.

The latest delivery for Penny Italy included seven Jungheinrich ETV 216i reach trucks. Among them is also the jubilee truck with the number 1000. The reach truck with integrated lithium-ion battery has become a popular choice since its launch almost two years ago. “The ETV 216i is the first truck ever to consistently exploit the advantages of lithium-ion technology. This makes it the most compact and powerful reach truck in its class,” explains Fabien Tozzi, head of product management for reach trucks at Jungheinrich, adding, “It pays off that we directly incorporated our customers’ ideas and wishes into the truck’s design.”

The ETV 216i has a space-saving and powerful lithium-ion battery, it is ergonomic and compact. This enables it to achieve high agility in the warehouse, while at the same time offering significant freedom of movement and all-round visibility for the driver. User-friendliness and an overall high level of safety are the result.

Gianfranco Virgillo, warehouse manager at Penny Market Gioia del Colle (Bari) Italy says, “With the ETV 216i, driver comfort on board is higher than ever before. It offers more space for arms and legs and, thanks to the raised seat, better visual control of the surroundings. These significant improvements are only possible thanks to the elimination of the bulky battery tray. By integrating the battery, the design is more functional, both in terms of driver comfort and the resulting performance”.

In addition, the fully integrated lithium-ion battery offers other advantages such as a longer life, no maintenance and better performance compared to a lead-acid battery. Particularly short charging intervals enable 24/7 operation, in which the ETV 216i can store loads of up to 1600kg at a lifting height of up to 10.7m.

“We are very satisfied with our choice. Penny Market can already count three warehouses where we use reach trucks and order pickers with lithium-ion batteries. In view of the excellent results so far, we intend to complete the fleet renewal by 2021 and use lithium-ion solutions at all other locations,” says Angelo Loffredo, logistics manager at Penny Italy.