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Safety and savings take center stage: results of the EcoDrive Challenge 2025

The transport company VCHD Cargo has announced the results of the VCHD EcoDrive Challenge 2025 competition, which focused on promoting economical, smooth, and defensive driving in long-distance transport. All of the company’s branches in the Czech Republic took part in the competition, and drivers who drove at least 10,000 kilometers during the competition were evaluated. The competition focused exclusively on long-distance export routes, where driving style has a significant impact on fuel consumption, safety, and the technical condition of vehicles.

The EcoDrive Challenge ran from September to November 2025 and was based on objective data from the Perfect Drive telematics system. The company has been using this system for a long time to evaluate driving style and provide feedback to drivers. The aim of the competition was not only to compare results, but above all to motivate drivers to take a conscious and professional approach to driving and to further improve their skills.

VCHD Cargo has long focused on economical and defensive driving and regularly trains its drivers in this area. This is not only about reducing fuel consumption, but also about increasing road safety, traffic flow, lower vehicle wear and tear, and reducing the impact on the environment.

The competition was evaluated based on monthly reports from the Perfect Drive system and was based on four indicators that were not chosen at random. They primarily monitor driving smoothness, the driver’s ability to anticipate traffic situations, and respect for speed limits. These factors have a direct impact on road safety, fuel consumption, equipment wear and tear, and the amount of emissions produced. For VCHD Cargo, economical driving does not mean inefficient driving, but a calm, anticipatory, and professional driving style.

The overall results of the competition were dominated by the Kladno branch, whose drivers took all three top places. The winner was Ladislav Albini with 95.73 points, Marek Pčola took second place and Stanislav Pátek finished third. The company also recognized the best drivers from other branches, namely Lukáš Koblížek from Brno and Jiří Krupauer from Havlíčkův Brod.

In addition to the main evaluation, specialists in individual parameters and drivers with the greatest improvement in results during the competition – the so-called jumpers of the month – were also recognized. The winners received valuable prizes and diplomas. The competition fulfilled its goal and served not only as a comparison of performance, but above all as a motivational tool promoting safe and responsible driving.

“We greatly appreciate our drivers. They are the ones who represent VCHD Cargo every day on roads across Europe. That is why we work with them on a long-term basis, train them regularly, and provide them with feedback based on objective data. We see the EcoDrive Challenge as a reward for professionalism and the desire to constantly improve,” said Petr Kozel Jr., Chief Operating Officer and Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of VCHD Cargo a.s.

VCHD Cargo currently employs 500 people in Europe and has long been one of the transport companies that emphasizes safety, efficiency, and a responsible approach to transport. The positive response to the competition and the high participation across branches confirmed that the chosen approach brings concrete and measurable results. The company is therefore already planning to organize the EcoDrive Challenge again in 2026.

Völker Logistik GmbH is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. What began as a family-owned company in 2005 has grown into a reliable logistics partner with a strong regional presence and international focus. A key milestone was its entry into the VCHD Cargo Group in 2021, also a family-owned company, under whose leadership Völker Logistik has been growing steadily ever since.

“The past two decades have been marked by dynamism, innovation, and sustained growth. Today, we are proud to offer our customers comprehensive services in the areas of regional and long-distance land transport, consulting, and training,” says Niko Völker, Managing Director of Völker Logistik.

“The cooperation between our two family businesses shows how much stronger joint growth can be thanks to synergy. I particularly appreciate the experienced management of Völker Logistik, which works closely with our international team and has succeeded in creating trusting relationships between employees at all levels,” adds Ing. Petr Kozel, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of VCHD Cargo a.s.

Based in Alsfeld, Hesse, near the A5 motorway, Völker Logistik has more than 1,300 m² of its own storage space and a modern fleet of vehicles. This year alone, the company has expanded its fleet with more than 15 new vehicles worth over €1.5 million. These are mainly 12-ton vehicles for regional deliveries, which replace vehicles intended for existing customers, but also serve new orders – for example, for the pharmaceutical segment with direct deliveries to hospitals – and are operated by specially trained crews. Over the next two months, the fleet is set to be expanded further with vehicles with swap bodies and hydraulic ramps worth over €400,000.

“In order to meet our customers’ requirements, we order vehicles in line with their corporate design and the required equipment,” explains Niko Völker. In addition, all vehicles in the fleet are equipped for the transport of dangerous goods in accordance with ADR and equipped with an electric pallet truck for easier unloading at customer sites. The fleet is not only used regionally; some of the vehicles are also located directly at customer sites. This investment strategy is part of the company’s planned organic growth.

In the area of regional transport, Völker Logistik serves more than 800 postal code areas every day with more than 50 vehicles and completes over 15,000 transport orders per month. Long-distance transport is provided by its own trucks, including swap bodies and special solutions for oversized shipments.

“Our philosophy is to create added value for customers, partners and employees. Integration into the VCHD Cargo Group has opened up new opportunities and synergies for us, from which we have been able to benefit significantly in recent years,” adds Niko Völker.

In addition to the company’s 20th anniversary, another significant milestone was reached this year: for the first time in the history of Völker Logistik, the number of employees exceeded 100. As it celebrates this important company anniversary, Völker Logistik is not only looking back on its successful past, but also focusing on future development: digitalization, sustainability, and customer orientation remain the cornerstones of the company’s strategy for the coming years.

International transport company VCHD Cargo has invested in expanding its fleet with vehicles for transporting pharmaceutical products in accordance with Good Distribution Practice (GDP) principles. It has purchased tractor units and trailers specifically designed for the transport of medicines and high-security shipments, with a total value of CZK 20 million. The company has also successfully completed a repeat GDP Pharma audit.

The transport of pharmaceutical products is one of the most sensitive and strictly regulated areas of logistics. Its specifics stem from the nature of the goods being transported, which may be sensitive to temperature, light, humidity, or mechanical damage. Good Distribution Practice sets rules for the handling, storage, and transport of medicines to ensure their quality and integrity throughout the logistics process. Medicines and vaccines must be transported at a specific temperature, usually between 2 and 8 °C (in refrigerated mode) or 15 and 25 °C (at controlled room temperature). Authorization for their transport is linked to special vehicle technology.

VCHD Cargo has therefore expanded its fleet with seven Eur VI emission standard long-distance trucks and ten refrigerated semi-trailers designed for the transport of pharmaceuticals. These three-axle refrigerated semi-trailers have a capacity of 66 Euro pallets and are equipped with a refrigeration unit that covers a temperature range from minus 20 to plus 20 degrees. They exceed the standard EN 12642 XL safety certificate and are specified for the transport of medicines, including the Pharmaserv pharmaceutical certificate, which proves that the combination of the vehicle and the refrigeration unit meets the high requirements of this industry. The purchased trailers also meet the conditions for TAPA security standards and are equipped with an integrated telematics system, which helps to meet the requirements of good distribution practice (GDP).

“Telematics continuously monitors not only the set temperature on the refrigeration unit, but also the current temperature inside the cargo space, provides security information – opening and closing of the trailer doors and activation of the lock – and shows the location of the vehicle in real time. All this information is visible to our dispatch center online and can be shared with our customer in accordance with GDP,” explains Petr Kozel, CEO and Chairman of the Board of VCHD Cargo a.s. The trailers are equipped with the highest possible anti-theft security with multi-stage locking of the trailer doors. These lock automatically when closed and can only be reopened when the dispatch center releases the door opening via telematics and the driver enters the generated security code.

“Thanks to these technologies, we are able to offer the pharmaceutical industry fully transparent and secure transport in accordance with European legislation. Our priority is quality and the trust our customers place in us. Since last year, our many years of experience in transport across Europe and high-quality transport services have also been available to customers in the pharmaceutical industry, and based on positive feedback, we are now further expanding our services for this segment,” says Petr Kozel.

Companies transporting pharmaceuticals must be certified and regularly audited. VCHD Cargo recently successfully passed GDP Pharma recertification, which authorizes it to transport shipments from the pharmaceutical industry and other segments of the life sciences sector.

The international transport group VCHD Cargo has launched its own photovoltaic power plant. 230 photovoltaic panels with a total output of 100 kWp supply electricity to the warehouse and administrative premises of its subsidiaries in Alsfeld, Germany. The company has also installed a battery storage facility there and will supply part of the energy produced to the public grid. Photovoltaics is also one of the segments to which VCHD Cargo provides its transport services.

VCHD Cargo GmbH and Völker Logistik are part of the VCHD Cargo Group and are based in Alsfeld, Germany. The local warehouse and cross-dock building of approx. 1,400 m² and the office space are heated by energy-efficient heat pumps and energy-saving LED lighting is installed in the buildings. The overall electricity consumption has therefore already been optimized before the construction of the photovoltaic plant this autumn. Now that it has been tested and put into normal operation, the system is set up to cover the year-round energy consumption of the logistic buildings and office areas and the electric vehicle charging station. A battery storage system with a capacity of 83 kWh has been installed on site to store the energy. Approximately 40% of the surplus electricity generated will then be fed into the public grid. The company worked exclusively with local companies for the installation and commissioning and managed to take the project from planning to implementation in just three months.

„The installation of the photovoltaic plant in Alsfeld is part of the planned sustainable development of our branches,” explains Ing. Petr Kozel, CEO and Chairman of the Board of VCHD Cargo a. s., and adds, “The technology is advanced and shows significant savings. In addition, since we provide our transport services to customers/manufacturers in this segment, we have good references and see a future in photovoltaics.”

Völker Logistik, which has been part of the VCHD Cargo Group since 2021, provides transport services to PV panel suppliers. It loads fragile PV shipments daily at its warehouse in Alsfeld and coordinates delivery dates throughout Germany directly with customers. “The solar power generation segment is specific in its requirements for the quality of the shipments,“ explains Niko Völker, Managing Director of Völker Logistik GmbH, adding, “Our drivers are specially trained to deliver such shipments and this year we have invested more than 20,000 euros in electric pallet trucks that make the distribution of these panels significantly easier.”