Rapid Turnaround Times - HECFLEET fuel terminal from Hectronic guarantees efficiency at the new car rental centre of Düsseldorf International Airport

It is one of those projects that one readily and deservedly calls a showcase project; especially when everything runs smoothly from the very start. And this was the case at the new car rental centre of Düsseldorf International Airport.

There are 2,500 parking spaces on nine levels with direct connection to the departures level. And there is something else: An ultra-modern service centre. This is where returned hire cars are washed and refuelled. The size of the centre is breathtaking: The new centre will witness the pick-up and return of some 300,000 hire cars per year. And it goes without saying that a higher level of efficiency is required. Also, and especially, when it comes to refuelling the vehicles. This efficiency is guaranteed by Hectronic products. “It took many meetings before we agreed on the best solution for a centre of this size and capacity,” says Wilfried Schlösser. But the excellent planning paid dividends, since, according to the sales manager of KS System GmbH, “the centre has run smoothly from the word go.”The Hectronic partner was responsible for equipping the filling area within the service centre.

Five car hire companies offer their services at Germany‘s third largest airport. While their offices are all situated under one roof on the central arrivals level, the collection, return and preparation of vehicles used to occur at various locations. But all that is history now, thanks to the new car rental centre. This concentration of services has streamlined processes for customers and providers alike, and considerably reduced the amount of traffic.

A major contributing factor to this development is the service centre with petrol station. Up to 250 returned vehicles have to be refuelled at three lanes each hour. This figure alone highlights just how efficient an autofuel system must be to survive in this environment. “It soon became apparent that a HECFLEET was required,” comments Wilfried Schlösser. A concept was proposed and realised in cooperation with the operator ARWE, the general contractor MAN Ferrostahl, the holding tank manufacturer WEMA-Niederkassel and the relevant partners in Düsseldorf. The result: An ultra-modern system spread across 520 square metres. This initially included the full network capability of the three fuel terminals with barcode scanner, next to each of which an MPD pump was installed. Both communicate via IFSF-LON protocol. The complex also includes four OPTILEVEL probes which monitor the terminals filled with up to 200,000 litres of fuel.

HecPoll software with FleetNet guarantees the operator ARWE online authorisation with product restrictions and limit management. Barcode scanners are used to identify both pump attendants and individual refuelling cards (job cards). The export and import for ID cards and transactions at higher order systems is fully automatic. Furthermore, the software provides a wide range of reports and analysis features.

How do processes take place with the new technology? The operator ARWE electronically registers a vehicle upon its return. If it needs to be refuelled, an electronic refuelling job card is sent to the server. This job card with respective barcode is also available on paper. The pump attendant – who has scanned his/her driver’s card (employee ID card) to confirm stored identification data – takes the job card from the vehicle and holds it in front of the barcode scanner. If the barcode data corresponds to the electronically transferred data, the vehicle can be refuelled. If the data does not correspond, the process is cancelled. However, supervisors have a ‘bypass card’ with which they can restart a refuelling process. But it is still only possible to refuel the vehicle with the fuel type specified in the identification file. Once the tank is full, HECFLEET sends respective data to the FleetNet server.

Transparent data, centralised control and effective operating processes – resulting in a car rental centre that Düsseldorf International Airport can be proud of. An achievement to really boast about.