2014 Sustainability All-Stars Announced

Now in its fourth year, the Sustainability All Stars of 2014 add to a growing list of fleet professionals who have demonstrated significant contributions to environmental sustainability and fleet efficiencies in the industry. The awards look at four main criteria:

• Longevity: Time in the fleet industry dedicated to sustainability efforts.
• Accomplishments: Examples of recent, significant sustainability achievements.
• Innovation: Innovative ways individuals have contributed to reducing emissions and fuel consumption.
• Industry involvement: Involvement in industry-wide efforts to promote sustainable fleet solutions. Included here are a few highlights of each winner and their fleet, though many are doing far more than what’s listed.

Official winner announcements were made live at the Green Fleet Conference & Expo on Oct. 30 in Schaumburg, Ill.

Questions about the Sustainability All Star Awards or the Green Fleet Conference & Expo?
E-mail: joanne.tucker@bobit.com.

Tom Armstrong, Director of Fleet, ThyssenKrupp Elevator

• Added 20 hybrid-electric service vehicles in 2014.
• Use of alt-fuel vehicles saved over 710,000 gallons of gas and 115,000 gallons of diesel from 2010 to October 2013.
• Currently operates 85 propane-autogas-powered vehicles, and growing.

Jeremy Baker, Fleet Manager, Green Mountain Power

• Rightsizing initiatives after a company merger resulted in higher fleet utilization.
• Growing pool fleet to minimize personal mileage reimbursement; all new pool vehicles are EV or hybrid models.
• Uses electric low-speed vehicles for nearby errands and campus use, and has onsite EV chargers.

Jim Bigelow, Director, Enterprise Fleets, Cox Enterprises

• Replaced 1,500 Chevrolet Express and Ford 
• E-Series with Mercedes-Benz Sprinters. 
• Deploying routing software, which will 
• result in a 20-percent reduction in mileage. 
• Using electric-hydraulic booms on bucket trucks to eliminate idling.

Douglas Bond, Transportation Services Manager, Alameda County, Calif.

• Received EV Readiness Award for Bay Area 
• Climate Collaborative.
• Grew hybrid/electric fleet to 253 units.
• Installed 40 dual-port charging stations at 
• six locations throughout the county.

Greg Brake, Associate Director, DeKalb County, Ga.

• Reduced gasoline consumption by 6.5 percent, or 121,455 gallons.
• Replaced three gasoline- and 11 diesel-powered vehicles with CNG-powered units.
• Added 486 additional telematics systems to fleet.

Bonnie Brown, Administration Services Manager, Roche Diagnostics

• Vehicle selector choice drove a 30-percent increase in fuel economy.
• Honored as finalist in 2014 NAFA Fleet Excellence Awards in fleet sustainability.
• Established a sustainability goal to increase fleet mpg by 2015.

Dave Champagne, Fleet Superintendent, City of Roanoke, Va.

• Replaced 35 percent of the City’s small, utility-type vehicles with electric-powered alternatives. 
• Helped convert 40 percent of the City’s mowing equipment to operate on propane.
• Spearheading the installation of telematics to help aid fuel management.

Lea Covington Rowen, Fleet Manager, AstraZeneca

• Consistently at 25 mpg average fuel economy through improved vehicle selectors across the fleet’s 5,600 units.
• Only acquire vehicles with best-in-class fuel economy with total cost of ownership in mind.

• Piloting VW Passat diesels in fleet.

Tony Eiermann, Fleet Manager, Asset and Value Management, Coca-Cola Refreshments

• Manages one of the largest hybrid-electric fleets in the U.S. with 738 vehicles. 
• Added 16 fully electric refrigerated trucks to Odwalla brand’s delivery fleet in California. 
• Helped Coca-Cola achieve a 15-percent reduction in carbon dioxide with alternative fuels.

Jim Florio, Chairman/CEO, Click Wholesale Distributing

• Operates a fleet with almost 50 percent of vehicles operating on CNG.
• Displaced 7,300 gallons of diesel in 2013.
• Projects a minimum displacement of 25,000 gallons of diesel by the end of 2014, saving the company $50,000.

Chris Galati, CNG Program Manager, NW Natural

• Testing new technologies for CNG, including adsorbed natural gas tanks for improved onboard fuel storage as well as test refined CNG fill nozzles.
• Works with customers interested in natural gas. NW Natural has started to open and maintain CNG fill stations for customers.

Mel Galbraith, Fleet Director, City of Scottsdale, Ariz.

• Increased solid waste CNG vehicles from 20 percent to 46 percent.
• Converted 15,000-gallon underground unleaded tank to E-85. 
• Expanded CNG slow-fill lines from three towers to nine towers.

Jim Gillespie, President and General Manager, Yellow Cab Cooperative Inc.

• Introduced the first fleet of hybrid taxis in America in 2004, according to Yellow Cab.
• Seven percent of fleet currently CNG.
• Cut fleet’s tailpipe emissions from 568 to 246 grams per mile.
• Reduced total fleet emissions by 49 percent.

Greg Hansen, Fleet Administrator, Washington State Department of Transportation

• Pioneered public fleet vehicle leasing by being the 1st state agency to lease five Nissan LEAFs and has plans to grow EV leased fleet
• Installed level-2 EV chargers at all of its motor pool locations (6) and plans to expand infrastructure as EV fleet grows.
• From 2008-2013, through aggressive rightsizing, increasing utilization, implementing anti-idling policies and better routing, WSDOT had cut fuel consumption by 10% at approximately 400,000 fuel gallons
• In same period, reduced employee travel by 2.2 million miles

Kenneth Hoglund, Director, Fleet Management Dept., City of Houston

• Reduced nearly 1,000 underutilized vehicles, resulting in $1 million in sales. 
• Procured 27 electric Nissan LEAFs.
• Partnered with Zipcar to launch FleetShare, a program for city employees needing a vehicle.

 

Mitch Jackson, Vice President, Environmental Affairs and Sustainability, FedEx

• 

  Operated 214 EVs and 363 hybrid-electric vehicles by end of FY-2013.
• First in transportation logistics to call for fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas standards for commercial vehicles.
• Team improved Express fleet mpg by 5 percent in FY-2013, saving 20 million gallons of fuel.

Jeff Jeter, Environmental Health and Safety Manager, Chesterfield County, Va.

• Division rightsized 39 percent of vehicles to date in FY-2014.
• Identified three waste streams to mitigate negative impact and reduce carbon footprint. 
• Met with Congress for positive regulations for alternative-fuel initiatives and incentives.

Johnson & Johnson

Louise Davis-Lopez, CAFM/CFM
Julie Pedelini
Brian Snow

• Became the leader in hybrid vehicle usage with 2,000 vehicles
• Reduced global fleet CO2 emissions by 15 percent over three years.
• Piloted “Green Driver” training in Belgium, resulting in 6-percent fuel consumption reduction.

Spiro Kattan, Fleet Supervisor, NYC Department of Sanitation

• Use of biodiesel has displaced more than 3 million gallons of petroleum-based diesel fuel since 2007.
• Operates more than 800 light-duty hybrid-electric vehicles which make up approximately 80 percent of the light-duty fleet.
• Owns 49 Level 2 EV chargers citywide.

Steve Kibler, Fleet Manager, City of Loveland, Colo.

• Operates five Nissan LEAFs, with EV growth expected to continue.
• Cites a 41-percent reduction in per-mile costs on the EVs compared to their gas line vehicles used for similar operations.
• Promotes employee EV use, and paid $4,000 less in reimbursements in first year.

Randy Koss, Supervisor, Fleet Maintenance and Fleet Services, NV Energy

• Operating 50 hybrid bucket trucks to reduce idling and decrease fuel consumption.
• Provides education on hybrid bucket trucks to improve operator buy-in.
• Has installed 133 individual charging ports at more than 47 locations statewide to promote EV use.

Keith Leech, Fleet Manager, City of Sacramento

• Added LNG solid waste vehicles increasing the City’s LNG fuel consumption by 87 percent.
• Consumed 703,419 fewer gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel in 2013 over 2009.
• Serves as the chairman of the Greater Sacramento Regional Clean Air Coalition.

James Lefton, Executive Officer, Transit Services, LA Department of Transportation

• Has one of the largest NGV fleets in the country. 
• Displaced more than 14.1 million gasoline gallon equivalents (GGEs) and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 5,364 tons. 
• Uses renewable natural gas to fuel 100 percent of CNG fleet.

Rick Longobart, Facilities, Fleet and Stores Manager, City of Santa Ana, Calif. 

• Developed a Green Strategic Plan to increase sustainability, aiming for a goal of 75-80% alternative fuel-driven. 
• Has a fleet working at 95% productivity. 
• Named as one of the first ten inductees into the Public Fleet Hall of Fame. 
• Fleet Stats: 651 units, 20% green

Elsie Lucia, Executive Director, Fleet and Purchasing Service, Estee Lauder

• Improved fuel economy by 16 percent, saving more than 210,000 gallons of fuel.
• Avoided emitting more than 1,850 metric tons of CO2.
• Rightsized fleet by selecting four-cylinder engines, while educating drivers on better driving habits via online newsletters and safety modules.

Claude Masters, CAFM, Manager of Vehicle Acquisition and Fuel Florida Power and Light

• Was recognized by the EPA for its “Clean Fleet and Consumer Education Program.”
• Operates 1,750 biodiesel vehicles, and 550 hybrid or plug-in electric vehicles.
• Reduced petroleum use by 295,000 gallons and CO2 emissions by 2,500 metric tons in 2012.

Dave Meisel, Senior Director of Transportation and Aviation Services, PG&E

• Working to develop two types of Class 5 plug-in hybrid work trucks.
• Operates nearly 3,500 alt-fuel vehicles in a fleet with nearly 14,000 pieces of equipment.
• Engaged in industry-wide efforts with Edison Electric Institute to promote plug-in electric vehicle use in utility fleets.

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Greg Miller, Director of Fleet, DHL Express

• With a total fleet size of 2,500, recently rolled out telematics to 1,400 vehicles to help improve routing and fuel consumption.
• Has 312 vehicles that operate on LPG with plans for another 106 this year.
• Operates 54 hybrid step vans, 400 clean diesel vans, and other electric/hybrid vehicles.

Tracy Ochsner, Assistant Operation Services Director, City of Fort Collins, Colo.

• Alternative fuels make up 58 percent of total consumption and its use on the rise.
• Implemented idle-reduction policy which limits idling to 30 seconds. 
• Publishes monthly shop energy usage and cost graphs for employees to access.

Ted Olsen, Market Manager, Arro Autogas

• Reduced emissions by 30 percent by switching 48 vehicles to propane autogas and diesel. 
• Began recycling program at corporate office.
• Chairman of Western Propane Gas Association, initiating the propane autogas vehicle road shows.

Tony Orta, Manager, Asset Management, SoCalGas

• Operates nearly 1,000 CNG trucks – dedicated and bi-fuel, with plans to place an additional 1,000 CNG vehicles by 2018.
• Meets or exceeds CARB regulations for utility fleet diesel particulate matter emissions.
• 26 of 52 garages have CNG fueling stations, and that number is expected to grow.

Kiley Patino, Corporate Claims Specialist - Fleet Administrator, Esurance

• Acquired and added Ford Fusion Hybrids to selector, greatly increasing the fleet’s average mpg.
• Lowered fuel cost to $150 against 100 vehicles since 2008.
• Plans to save 69,000 gallons of fuel by 2017 with addition of Fusion Hybrids.

Mike Payette, Director, Fleet Equipment, Staples

• Operates 53 and growing all-electric trucks in seven states.
• Operates biodiesel wherever possible and has 10 CNG Class 7-8 trucks.
• Reduced maximum top speed depending on year/make/model to improve fuel economy.

Deanna Pressgrove, Public Works and Environmental Conservations Manager, City of Cathedral City, Calif.

• Secured $1.5 million in funding since 2001 to help build onsite CNG fueling station.
• Created a comprehensive Energy Action Plan to reduce energy consumption.
• Supports development of the Coachella Valley Plug-in Electric Vehicle Readiness Plan.

Kelly Reagan, Fleet Administrator, City of Columbus, Ohio

• City’s first CNG station has pumped more than 500,000 gasoline gallon equivalents (GGEs), saving Columbus more than $600,000.
• Chairman of MEMA-OH.
• Three-time recipient of Sustainability Award for Columbus.

James Reinish, Manager, Central Automotive Division, Port Authority NY/NJ

• Secured space at Port Authority’s airports to open three E-85 stations.
• Opened the first hydrogen fueling station in New York City.
• Worked with seven automotive shops to phase out hazardous cleaning products.

Mike Riley, President, Westco Express

• Instituted driver incentive pay programs to encourage good driver behavior. 
• Has been a leader in reducing fuel use and overall emissions for mid-size fleets. 
• Increased fleet’s average mpg by more than 10 percent since 2009.

Abe Stephenson, Fleet and Administration Manager, Dish Network

• Introduced 200 propane autogas vehicles, and onsite fueling into the fleet.
• Focused on vehicle-specific solutions to reduce fuel and emissions.
• Had fleetwide calibrations reducing 300 vans worth of emissions from roadways.

Charlie Stevenson, CAFM, Manager, Fleet and Materials Management, Aqua America

• Received several Pennsylvania state grants for vehicles and infrastructure in 2014 to add more CNG vehicles to fleet.
• Five-year plan includes addition of 90 large and small CNG vehicles in fleet.
• Has a time-fill CNG station at Springfield, Pa., location.

John Talbot, Director of Fleet Services, Asplundh Tree Expert Co.

  

• Launched a propane-powered 58-ft. aerial lift boom truck into fleet for the first time.
• Asplundh has been a strong telematics user for several years now, with over 19,000 units installed on its fleet vehicles, and this technology has greatly improved the company’s overall fuel efficiency.
• Planning to introduce dual-fueled (CNG/Gas) pickup trucks in the near future
• Looking into dual-fueled (Propane/Gas) chippers

Jerome Webber, Vice President, Global Fleet and Transportation Management, AT&T

• Deployed 10,200+ alt-fuel vehicles, including 8,000 dedicated-CNG service vehicles.
• Developed strategy to rightsize fleet by replacing full-size service vehicles with more fuel efficient models.
• Employed a garage-level sustainability program including tire and waste recycling.

Ed Yorek, Maintenance Manager, St. Cloud Metro Bus

• Recognized with the Sustainability Award by the City of St. Cloud, Minn.
  
• Converted a 40-foot New Flyer diesel bus to operate on used vegetable oil.
• First public transit system in Minnesota to use CNG as a primary fueling source.