Transforming the Future of Foodservice Delivery: Sysco Receives First Battery Electric Freightliner eCascadia

HOUSTON and PORTLAND, Ore., Nov. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Sysco Corporation SYY, the leading global foodservice distribution company, received its first series-produced battery electric Freightliner eCascadia. With one of the largest private fleets in the United States, Sysco is leading the future of sustainability for foodservice distribution.

Sysco's first zero-emission Class 8 truck was presented to Marie Robinson, Sysco's EVP and chief supply chain officer at the Daimler Truck North America (DTNA) Manufacturing Plant in Portland. The company's first Freightliner eCascadia is expected to operate in Sysco's Riverside, California site, which will receive additional eCascadias in the coming months.

"The Daimler Truck team has been a great partner to Sysco as we have worked to electrify our fleet and we're thrilled to receive our first battery electric Freightliner eCascadia truck," said Robinson. "This zero-emission tractor is powerful, quiet and -- importantly – very comfortable to drive. That means it's not only good for the planet, but it will improve the driving experience for thousands of our delivery partners."

Earlier this year, Sysco and DTNA, the leading North American heavy-duty truck manufacturer, announced plans to deploy up to 800 battery electric Freightliner eCascadias by 2026. The deployment of Freightliner eCascadias along with electric refrigerated trailers will play a significant role in achieving Sysco's science-based climate goal.

"Sysco is proud to be leading the industry with our science-based climate goal to significantly reduce our direct emissions by 27.5%," said Neil Russell, Sysco's senior vice president of corporate affairs and chief communications officer. "Today is a major milestone in our climate journey as we work toward electrifying 35% of our U.S. fleet by 2030. Sharing the vision and responsibility with similarly-minded companies like Daimler Truck North America is crucial in moving toward a sustainable future."

Sysco Riverside continues to build its charging infrastructure to support additional battery electric truck deployments, including adding additional solar capacity.

"Thanks to customers like Sysco, we are delivering a purpose-built, zero-emission vehicle to the heavy-duty truck market that offers the durability, reliability and capability to meet our customers' business and sustainability goals. The scalability of these trucks and the deep understanding of the integration into fleets will move the industry forward to a cleaner future and make the transformation of transportation a reality," said David Carson, senior vice president, sales and marketing, DTNA. "The Freightliner eCascadia now rolling off the production line and into customers' hands represents a historic moment for the entire industry."

In pre-series production and real-world testing, prototypes of the eCascadia accumulated over 1.5 million miles of use in customer fleets since 2018. Revealed in May of 2022, the eCascadia debuts the innovative Detroit ePowertrain, in addition to new safety and connectivity features from Detroit Assurance and Detroit Connect.

Powered by multiple battery and drive axle options, the Freightliner eCascadia provides a typical range of 155, 220 or 230 miles depending on configuration. Therefore, the truck is ideally suited for short-haul routes that allow for depot-based charging like last mile logistics, local and regional distribution, drayage and warehouse-to-warehouse applications.

The in-house developed and fully integrated Detroit ePowertrain maximizes efficiency and driver comfort. Detroit Connect eServices offer customers features like the Charger Management System with eRange prediction and battery health monitoring that enable fleets to strategically save money and increase their productivity. The eCascadia comes standard with Detroit Assurance with Active Brake Assist 5 and debuts the new Detroit Assurance safety feature, Active Side Guard Assist.

Learn more about Sysco's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program, including Sysco's 2021 CSR Report.

The eCascadia delivery has been supported by Houston Freightliner & Western Star, a DTNA Elite Support certified dealership with over 20 years of customer experience ranging across all aspects of truck ownership, especially in an ever-changing marketplace.

Media Contact:
Sysco: Shannon.Mutschler@sysco.com I DTNA: anja.weinert@daimlertruck.com

Sysco is the global leader in selling, marketing and distributing food products to restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, lodging establishments and other customers who prepare meals away from home. Its family of products also includes equipment and supplies for the foodservice and hospitality industries. With more than 71,000 associates, the company operates 333 distribution facilities worldwide and serves approximately 700,000 customer locations. For fiscal 2022 that ended July 2, 2022, the company generated sales of more than $68 billion. Information about our CSR program, including Sysco's 2021 Corporate Social Responsibility Report, can be found at sysco.com/csr2021report.

Freightliner Trucks is a division of Daimler Truck North America (DTNA) LLC, headquartered in Portland, Oregon. With 80 years of experience, Freightliner produces and markets medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks as the leading heavy-duty truck brand in North America. DTNA is a subsidiary of Daimler Truck Holding AG (DTG), one of the world's leading commercial vehicle manufacturers. More information is available at www.Freightliner.com.

Daimler Truck North America LLC, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is a leading provider of comprehensive products and technologies for the commercial transportation industry. Daimler Truck North America designs, engineers, manufactures and markets medium- and heavy-duty trucks, school buses, vehicle chassis and their associated technologies and components under the Freightliner, Western Star, Thomas Built Buses, Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp and Detroit brands. Daimler Truck North America is a subsidiary of Daimler Truck Holding AG (DTG), one of the world's leading commercial vehicle manufacturers.

SOURCE Daimler Truck North America