Daimler Trucks unveils BharatBenz reefer truck to move Covid vaccines in India

January 27, 2021: Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV), now unveiled the BharatBenz BSafe Express, a specialized reefer truck designed for the safe transportation of Covid-19 vaccines.

Equipped with connectivity, the BSafe Express uses newly developed refrigeration units that ensure the temperature and stability of the vaccines is accurately monitored and maintained at all stages of delivery. The reefer is mounted on the BharatBenz 2823R heavy-duty chassis.

Satyakam Arya, managing director and CEO, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles said, “The combination of a strong, reliable chassis with a lightweight, insulated reefer and state-of-the-art connectivity device makes BharatBenz’s BSafe Express the perfect solution to India’s cold-chain infrastructure challenge. With this truck, we can deliver vaccines in perfect condition to even the most remote destinations, bringing the hope of a return to normalcy to over 1.3 billion people.”

India has recently started its corona vaccination campaign, aiming to vaccinate 300 million people by July 2021. The BharatBenz BSafe Express offers a solution to Indian logistics companies in the efforts to contribute to the nation’s goal of bringing COVID under control as quickly as possible. A daunting challenge in the second-most populous country in the world.

Quick, safe movement of vaccines
The refrigerated container is supplied by automotive system solutions provider Motherson Group. It is made from Glass Reinforced Plastic, XPS Foam, and other carefully-chosen materials that ensure the product is strong, water-resistant, and non-corrosive, yet light-weight and highly insulated. The container can be assembled locally in as little as 96 hours, making it a much more practical solution than conventional products which can take three or more weeks to deliver.

With purpose-built IoT sensors integrated inside the container, fleet managers can monitor temperature, humidity, shock, tilt, and tamper. They can also adjust the temperature as required, and sound the alarm if a problem occurs. This further integrates with QR Code tracking of all stock on board, so that users can check the location, status, and history of each package. Paired with BharatBenz’s Truckonnect telematics platform, the BSafe Express offers vaccine distributors absolute peace of mind with real-time tracking of both the vehicle and its precious cargo.