Hitachi Capital won the contract due to its ability to offer value-added services, such as design and build expertise in addition to funding, going beyond the limited delivery of a pure funding provider.

With sector-specific experience in retail and home delivery, Hitachi Capital is undertaking a review of the design and build of the Asda vans to improve the efficiency and practicality of the fleet, as well as advising on the existing fleet. 260 vehicles have now gone live, with 900 planned in total by end of 2012.

Gary Banister, national transport manager at Asda, explained: ‘The project is a result of a best practice review, with key objectives to renovate and revolutionise the home delivery fleet in order to improve compliance, reduce costs, enhance driver behaviour and also to create a step change in the industry.  We chose Hitachi Capital due to its dedicated commercial vehicle team and sector expertise of home delivery fleets. Asda reinvests operational savings in pricing for customers in store, and we have set a target for the project of saving at least £1.2m in operational expenditure, which will be reflected in store for our customers.’

Jon Lawes, divisional managing director of Hitachi Capital Commercial Vehicle Services, commented: ‘We are thrilled to work with an industry leader and to provide expertise to help the company set the standard while generating significant savings. Hitachi Capital offers more than funding – and we pride ourselves in the value we can add for Asda, from the design and build of the vehicles through to the review. This is a chance for Asda to lead the way in home delivery, and we intend to help them achieve this goal.’