Fashion supply chains run on efficient movement. Merchandise must travel from factories to distribution centers, through fulfillment operations and ultimately to stores or consumers, often within increasingly compressed delivery windows.
That puts enormous pressure on the distribution and fulfillment centers.
Brands and retailers invest heavily in automation, inventory systems and warehouse technologies designed to move products faster while controlling costs. Yet one source of operating cost can receive far less attention: how efficiently the energy powering material-handling equipment is actually used.
Hydrogen fuel-cell forklifts have already established a significant presence in U.S. warehouses and distribution centers. Nearly 70,000 hydrogen-powered forklifts are operating nationwide according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Major retailers and e-commerce companies, including Amazon and Walmart, have deployed fuel-cell material-handling equipment across distribution and fulfillment operations.
Their adoption illustrates why hydrogen has gained traction in high-throughput facilities. Fuel-cell forklifts are zero-emission, can be refueled quickly, maintain consistent power throughout a shift, and eliminate the space required for battery charging and change-out infrastructure. DOE research has also found that fuel-cell forklifts can reduce refueling or recharging labor costs by as much as 80 percent in certain high-use applications.
Those characteristics can be particularly relevant to fashion distribution, where seasonal peaks, promotional periods and e-commerce demand can put intense pressure on fulfillment operations.
But widespread adoption raises another question that receives far less attention: Once a facility commits to hydrogen, how efficiently is that fuel being used?
For facilities using liquid hydrogen to support material-handling fleets, hydrogen must first be delivered, stored and transferred before it reaches a forklift.
That creates an important question for supply-chain executives: How much of the hydrogen purchased actually reaches the fleet?
Liquid hydrogen is stored at approximately -253°C (-423°F). Even highly insulated cryogenic systems are impacted by heat entering from the surrounding environment.
In conventional storage, that heat causes liquid hydrogen to evaporate into gas inside the storage tank. As vapor accumulates, the storage tank pressure rises. Eventually, the tank pressure results in venting losses of the hydrogen that has already been produced, liquefied, transported, and purchased.
Additional significant losses occur during transfer and dispensing of the hydrogen as changes in temperature or pressure result in losses.
For a distribution center, the financial consequence is straightforward. Paying for hydrogen fuel that is lost during transfer, storage, or fueling results in additional operating costs.
Reducing these losses does not necessarily mean replacing an entire liquid hydrogen storage system.
An emerging approach is to treat liquid hydrogen storage as a thermal management challenge rather than simply a tank capacity issue.
Traditional cryogenic storage primarily uses insulation to slow incoming heat. Active thermal management, however, goes a step further by removing heat from the system and preventing the losses before they occur.
Refrigeration can maintain hydrogen in a subcooled liquid state, creating additional thermal margin before evaporation occurs. It can also recondense hydrogen vapor inside the tank, helping lower tank pressure and eliminating the need for routine venting.
Importantly for facilities with existing hydrogen infrastructure, thermal management technology can be integrated with existing equipment. This creates the potential to improve fuel utilization and operating margins without requiring wholesale replacement of existing liquid hydrogen storage assets.
That distinction matters for supply-chain operators. Infrastructure investment does not always have to mean replacing expensive equipment. Improving the performance of assets already in place can also reduce operating costs.
Fashion companies have become highly sophisticated at measuring what moves through their supply chains.
They track inventory turns, pick rates, labor productivity, order accuracy, transportation costs and fulfillment times. Energy infrastructure deserves similar scrutiny.
For hydrogen-powered distribution centers, that means following the fuel: Hydrogen purchased to hydrogen stored to hydrogen transferred to hydrogen dispensed and finally to hydrogen used.
The delivered price per kilogram of hydrogen tells only part of the story. A more meaningful metric is the cost per usable kilogram that actually reaches material-handling equipment.
Reducing losses can lower that effective fuel cost without requiring the hydrogen purchase price to decrease. It can also reduce delivery frequency, helping facilities further improve operating margins.
For fashion brands and retailers, warehouse energy decisions ultimately connect to a much larger objective: moving merchandise efficiently.
The next efficiency opportunity is in the fueling infrastructure itself, where better thermal management can preserve more of the hydrogen fuel already being purchased.
In an industry accustomed to examining every step between sourcing and final delivery for waste, delay and unnecessary cost, the hydrogen supply chain deserves the same scrutiny.
The relevant question is not simply how much hydrogen a distribution center purchases. It is how much of that hydrogen ultimately goes to work moving product.
Josh McMorrow is the CEO of Path2 Hydrogen and Executive Chairman at GenH2. GenH2 is a technology leader in liquid hydrogen infrastructure systems, including Zero-Loss Controlled Storage and advanced hydrogen liquefaction. The company focuses on the production of standardized equipment to speed midstream infrastructure buildout for hard-to-decarbonize sectors. The technology team includes former NASA Hall-of-Fame scientists with decades of experience researching, engineering, and building hydrogen solutions.