The Road to Zero John Bradburn, GM manager of waste-reduction efforts

Transcription

1 The Road to Zero John Bradburn, GM manager of waste-reduction efforts

2 Goal: Reduce impact our facilities and vehicles have on environment Waste reduction is one way; strive to lead Our worldwide facilities combined recycle more than 90% of the waste they generate

3 Data is the backbone Shows materials generated, reused and recycled; reveals improvement Enables lessons-learned to be shared where recycling infrastructure isn t developed Refine data into specific plant goals and metrics Tie goals into plant managers performance evaluations to ensure accountability

4 Use onsite supplier to manage all plant waste. Container preparation & labeling Investigate recycling opportunities Source separation & reduction studies Waste disposal scheduling Environmental studies Environmental reporting/training Cost reduction program

5 Approach waste from sustainable financial perspective; generates leadership interest Since 2007, GM has generated $2.5B in revenue through recycling activities

6 Achieving waste goals becomes sense of pride for employees Reflects in quality and throughput Become creative and lean by analyzing waste streams and optimizing for efficiency View recycling from a systems perspective to: protect the environment eliminate cost increase efficiency create revenue Through bankruptcy, wastereduction more important than ever

7 Goal: Manage byproducts within one system, achieve zero-landfill, recover all resources to their highest value Strategy: Leverage purchasing, leadership support (e.g., NA VP of Manufacturing) Challenge: Groups overlapped; material values not maximized Solution: Onsite resource managers with compliance, waste minimization focus Results: In 2007, all U.S. and Canada assembly operations implemented cross-functional, multi-facility program. Achieved $15M in value.

8 $50,000,000 $45,000,000 $40,000,000 $35,000,000 $30,000,000 $25,000,000 $20,000,000 $15,000,000 $10,000,000 $5,000,000 $0 Cost of Program Total Waste ,000,000 4,000,000 3,000,000 Tons 2,000,000 1,000,000 0 *Cost of Program = Total program spend less revenue back to GM from reconciliation & by-products programs

9 Ensure employees have stake in initiative; comes down to people and process Create rewards for new waste-reduction ideas Encourage employees to develop job functions with environment in mind Design engineers select parts with least waste, while thinking about how efficiently plant operator can assemble it on vehicle For example: A die-cut part coming to plant with only the part and not scrap saves time, enables more recycling at supplier level

10 Combine data with employee engagement to create best practices; drive them throughout the organization Spread throughout supply chain for more benefits Collaborate with suppliers to turn ideas into reality Rethink product design to avoid scrap Suppliers realize the business case; opportunity to highlight their own ingenuity

11 Integrate lifecycle environmental considerations into: Product development Manufacturing process Material selection Change a product, process or design to improve environmental impacts to environment and health Complete trial Make applicable for all manufacturing inputs, internal processes & outputs Set goals based on product strategies

12 Sustainability Matrix Sustainability Sub-factor Measureable Criteria Identify sustainable technologies Make business case Engage stakeholders Deploy Measure Communicate Social People Persons w Disabilities or Disadvantaged Environment Ecology Greening of Facilities Resource Efficiency Conservation Human Health Exposure Improvement Hearing Conservation Other Safety Youth Programs Employee Education and Communication Education and Academia Stewardhip Wildlife Protection/Enhancement Habitat Flora Enhancement Water, air, soil quality improvements Regulatory Compliance Improvement Carbon Footprint External Mentorship/Stewardship Landfill Free Suppler greening Process usage/conservation improvement Waste elimination/minimization Reuse Recycle Compost Energy from By-product Economic Product Sell Vehicles Alternative energy improvement Competitive Advantage Product Cost Reduction Recycled & Biobased content savings Other product quality improvement Fuel economy Manufacturing Output (By-product) revenue Input (Chemical raw material) savings Process cost savings Energy cost savings/revenue

13 All byproducts from ongoing, day-to-day operations Includes episodic/periodic byproducts like pit cleanouts Byproducts managed by any method except landfill At manufacturing sites, on average more than 96% of waste is recycled/reused and less than 4% is converted to energy at waste-to-energy facilities, replacing fossil fuels

14 Surpassed goal to make half of our manufacturing sites landfill-free by 2010 Executives & plants embraced strategic business concept Focus on decreasing waste generated, recycling unavoidable waste

15 Use resources in most efficient way. Goal: Understand how a sustainability program affects business decisions and performance Solution: Drill deeper into how resource usage decisions are made

16 Find paths to closed-loop recycling Recycle waste into new vehicle parts, plant supplies acoustic pads headliners under carpet door liners Collaborate with purchasing & product engineering

17 Converted Asian/U.S cardboard & recycled textile fibers into non-woven substrate for acoustics Eliminates plant waste, turns it into vehicle parts Substrate contains 25-30% cardboard Meets technical, commercial, & economic targets

18 Convert scrap battery covers into wood duck nesting boxes Place on GM, private and public grounds to improve habitats Provides safe place to lay eggs Example of finding alternative use for unneeded product

19 Door window cutouts generated sheet-metal scrap when doors were stamped Created reuse plan that saves energy, emissions & costs Sell it to stampers/fabricators, who then sell it to end user for less than cost of new material

20 One-way containers shipped to the U.S. reused to build trailers Chevrolet Cruze center console reused as a sled Scrap battery cover converted into planter

21 Used oil management expertise to lessen spill impact Previous options: Landfill or burning for energy Collected booms until no longer a need 227 miles Saved 29,000 gallons of water & Oil from nation s landfills Eliminated 212,500 lbs of waste Eliminated 149 tons of CO 2 -equiv. emissions from entering air

22 Gulf Oil Booms Find New Life in Heritage Environmental Collects Booms Mobile Fluid Recovery Extracts Oil and Wastewater GDC Inc. Produces Volt Components GM Installs Parts in Chevrolet Volt

23 25% boom material 25% recycled tires from our vehicle test facility 25% packaging plastic from our Fort Wayne plant 25% mixture of post-consumer recycled plastics and other polymers

24 Share knowledge to be a leader; work with policy, suppliers and associations Recommended new boom design with greater recyclability to U.S. EPA Polypropylene and other oil-phyllic materials preferred to enable end-of-life options Suppliers with recycling plans get preference Polypropylene core, rope and sheath preferred Avoid incompatible materials Heat ends or use plastic crimps vs. steel rings

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31 Environment & Energy Sustainability