Falck: “We always put safety and reliability of operations first.”

Around 60 Falck ambulances run on Neste MY Renewable Diesel today.
“In all weathers and temperatures, in all diesel engines, in all conditions, our vehicles must be reliable,” says Thomas Dahl, Fleet Manager at Falck.

But how did you get started with fossil free fuel?

Dahl continues: “Falck has historically played a big social role dating back over 100 years, of not simply being a service provider but also being part of ongoing societal development where the environment is a big priority area. Switching our vehicle fleet has taken both time and commitment. Investments have been made both internally and together with our suppliers to continuously assure our capability to deliver while at the same time we want to be part of developments within these prioritised issues. Taking an active part in the Fossil Free Sweden initiative at an early stage was self-evident and our own target was for our entire vehicle fleet to be fossil free by 2023.”

Did it not feel like a big leap, to go from tried and tested fossil diesel to Neste MY? 

Dahl again: “I come from Linköping and saw that the local bus company there was using HVO (now Neste MY Renewable Diesel). So I became curious and tried running my company car on HVO. This was the start of the Falck journey and we reached out to vehicle manufacturers to enable the switch. There has been a big interest which meant things escalated very quickly time wise, despite our safety work related to running operations. At this moment in time, we can say that the transition for our ambulances is more or less done, so we are now focusing on larger vehicle types such as our specialised ambulance buses in Värmland.”

Dahl continues: “We are working very hard to reduce our environmental impact and choosing fossil free fuel is the biggest initiative we as a company can do. But we also do plenty of other things, as we are very environmentally conscious. Plus, our customers have their requests and we are environmentally certified. One big bonus for us in this work has been the commitment of our employees and their willingness to learn more.”

What do your drivers and other employees have to say?

“Many of our drivers think it is fantastic that we have made this change, they are passionate about the issue and are fully committed to it. And then there are employees who think the switch is only making a minor contribution to the climate issue and want to see bigger changes at a global level. My feeling is that we all need to do our bit, and as a global company we can help show the way forward. Falck can make a contribution if our ambulances run on Neste MY Renewable Diesel, this can make it easier for other companies to follow, such as vehicles for fire or police. "

One last question for Dahl, Falck operates in over 30 countries, do you all think alike everywhere?

“Very much so, everyone shares the same philosophy, but when it comes to using fossil free fuel, Sweden has come the furthest. There are projects involving electric power in many countries. I personally think that this is creating a shortcut, with Neste MY you can simply switch to fossil free next time you fill the tank. Electric power is also hard to fully implement in Sweden right now. Whereas many countries, such as Denmark and Germany, are more compact Swedish vehicles often have a bigger working radius and you need to bear in mind that this can involve long journeys where you don’t have access to charging points.

“Many of our drivers think it is fantastic that we have made this change, they are passionate about the issue and are fully committed to it. And then there are employees who think the switch is only making a minor contribution to the climate issue and want to see bigger changes at a global level. My feeling is that we all need to do our bit, and as a global company we can help show the way forward. Falck can make a contribution if our ambulances run on Neste MY Renewable Diesel, this can make it easier for other companies to follow suit.”

- Thomas Dahl, Fleet Manager at Falck

About Falck
Falck was founded in Copenhagen in 1906 by Sophus Falck, and has been operating in Sweden since 1950.
Falck provides various kinds of healthcare, assistance, safety services and emergency assistance and rehabilitation services. The common denominator for all its business areas is a determination to help people in need.