French OEM, Chereau, won the Joseph Libner Special Environment Prize at the I-nnovation Awards ceremony held at this year's Solutrans exhibition in Lyon.
The prize, which rewards innovation in transport sustainability, was awarded to Chereau for its Refrigerated Optimised Advanced Design (ROAD) collaborative project.
ROAD, according to Chereau, was the first vehicle of its type in the world to run on hydrogen and to offer a record level of insulation (K coefficient of 0.27) due to a new vacuum-based technology.
The OEM explained that this intelligent and connected semi-trailer also makes it possible to save an average of 2L/100 km for its tractor due to a complete aerodynamic kit developed by Chereau.
This vehicle is at the origin of the 'From ROAD to REAL' program (from the ROAD concept to reality) and enabled the four new Chereau product ranges presented at Solutrans. These ranges benefit directly from the innovations present on ROAD: Inogam EVO, Chereau NEXT, Cherau PERFORMANCE and Chereau Hydrogen Power H2.
“This award, which comes after two gold and one silver medals won at the innovation prize at the previous three Solutrans editions, underlines Chereau's ambitions to fully contribute to the ongoing energy transition,” said Chereau CEO, Damien Destremau.
“Indeed, Chereau has decided to industrialise the hydrogen semi-trailer and the new generation of super-insulated semi-trailer, convinced that sustainable development is no longer an option but a necessity.
“Chereau's employees can be proud to make our brand shine nationally and internationally thanks to their capacity of innovation and the quality of their daily work. Congratulations to all of them.”