HAVERHILL — If you’ve spotted some of the new dark blue vans sporting the Amazon blue arrow logo making deliveries throughout the Greater Haverhill area, they likely began their journey at 25 Computer Drive in the Broadway Business Park.
That’s where Amazon now operates a fleet of 80 fully electric vans delivering products to customers, making it one of just four Amazon “last-mile” delivery stations in New England to have these high-tech vehicles.
Amazon officials hosted a tour of the building on Thursday with Mayor James Fiorentini, City Councilor Catherine Rogers, Fire Chief Robert O’Brien and Andrew Herlihy, division director for the city’s Economic Development Department.
Caitlin McLaughlin, an Amazon spokesperson, said the Haverhill site has 80 electric vans and also gas-powered ones, some of which will be phased out over time while others will remain in the fleet for long-distance deliveries. The new electric vans come in two sizes and have a range of 145 miles before needing a recharge.
She said the electric vans, which are built by Rivian — a company known for its high-tech electric pickup trucks and SUVs — are designed with many ergonomic and safety features such as fully adjustable driver’s seats and grab-handles to ensure “three points of contact” to prevent falls or slips when making deliveries as well as cameras offering a 360-degree view.
“We have 10,000 electric vans across the country which we’re still rolling out with the goal of 100,000 by 2030,” McLaughlin said, noting it is the largest fleet of electric delivery vans in the country. “Haverhill is one of four sites in New England that has these types of vans.”
She said the site began receiving the electric vans in May and are supported by 110 charging stations, including a few “fast chargers” that drivers can use if they are unable to charge their vans overnight. The charging stations look like streamlined gas pumps and each has two pull-out handles with thick power cables for connecting to van charging ports.
Amazon was able to roll out EDVs in Haverhill through a partnership with Mayor James Fiorentini, said John Greeley, head of economic development for Amazon in New England.
The partnership involved city departments working closely with National Grid to bring more electrical power to the Broadway Business Park to support Amazon as well as other newcomers to the park, including Monogram Foods and Edwards Vacuum.
“The future is today,” Fiorentini said while inspecting one of the electric vans. “People talk about electric vehicles being here in 10 years but we have 80 of them here right now.”
Fiorentini said the city submitted a proposal a few years ago to bring a giant Amazon distribution center to Haverhill but lost out to the town of North Andover. Instead, he said, his economic development team promoted the building that formerly housed Southwick clothing and before that Lowe’s Home Improvement as an Amazon last-mile site. He said Amazon brought about 300 jobs to the city, replacing many of the jobs lost when Southwick closed. Southwick manufactured Brooks Brothers suits and other articles of high-end clothing.
“We thought the world had come to an end when Brooks Brothers left,” Fiorentini said.
Rogers was curious about the amount of time on the road these new vans can operate and was told they typically last for 8 to 10 hours.
“If they do run out of power, we have to tow them,” said driver trainer Nicole Paradis.
She invited guests into the cabin of one of the vans and pointed out several creature comforts, including tall ceilings, a navigation screen and a separate video screen with a host of features including Bluetooth connectivity.
O’Brien asked if the fast charging stations can be used all the time and Paradis said overnight charging is preferred as it not as detrimental to the health of the batteries as fast charging can be if used frequently.
As electric vehicles grow in popularity, firefighters are learning how to respond to battery fires and crashes involving electric vehicles.
“We purchased a device the size of a small suitcase that we can connect to an electric vehicle’s charging port to disable the power in the event of an accident,” O’Brien said. “It creates a safer environment and prevents a vehicle from taking off. In the event of a fire, the batteries produce so much fire you’re best-case scenario is to let them burn, if you can, as it requires a lot of water to contain these kinds of fires. But changes in conditions can change your tactic on how you fight a fire.”
O’Brian said firefighting techniques change with the times and that Haverhill crews are trained for industry standards.
Inside the center, vans enter though one bay and pause while workers load them with packages then exit through another bay. Amazon officials said the vans arrive in six waves each day, with about 20 or so vans at a time loading up for deliveries.
Christina D’Amico, on-the-road operations manager for Amazon, said the Haverhill center handles about 30,000 packages each day and delivers throughout the Greater Haverhill area and along the Interstate 95 corridor as far north as Portsmouth.