Vehicle pollutants cause immediate and long-term effects on the environment as well as harm human health. It’s essential that brands in the automotive industry move towards more sustainable practices. Here are some brands that are leading current innovative green technology.
The automotive industry as a whole has developed a variety of green technologies to ensure sustainability and to lower the negative effects of the industry on the earth. Some companies have done a better job than others. One company has even created a foundation just to research how to become more sustainable.
Going green in any industry is incredibly important for the future of the environment. The automotive industry might be most important because of just how much of effect cars and vehicles have on the environment. Historically, the earth has been damaged by the production of cars and by the vehicles themselves. Smog and pollution still exist, but companies are working to reduce pollution in their vehicles.
Read on for information about companies that have gone above and beyond to institute green technology in the automotive industry. While this is not an all-inclusive list of every auto manufacturer, it is a good look into some of the top leaders in the industry.
Tesla – Electric Car
Innovative green technology is associated with Tesla first, which is the accelerating transition to sustainable energy.
Tesla was found in 2003 by an amazing group of engineers, who wanted to prove the world that electric vehicles are not fiction. After launching the first electric car, Roadster, in 2008, Tesla officially presented its cutting-edge battery technology and electric powertrain.
Annually Tesla publishes its impact report 2019 to set a sample in the automotive industry of zero-impact to the environment.
- Tesla produces zero-emission transport and energy products.
- Tesla vehicles are popular for the highest energy efficiency of any modern electric vehicles. However, the company has been working on improving its technology to minimize the cost of the products and to reduce the carbon footprint per driven mile.
- Tesla’s battery is designed to outlast the car. According to the report, the degradation of the battery is only 10%. All lithium-ion batteries are recycled.
- Electric vehicles reduce city pollution as well as the total carbon footprint.
- Within 7 years, from 2012 to 2019, approximately there is one Tesla vehicle fire for every 175 million miles traveled. According to the data from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and U.S. Department of Transportation, on average there is one vehicle fire for every 19 million miles traveled.
Learn more about sustainable electric cars and some reasons why you should buy one.
Giti – Tires
Giti, a Singapore-based tire company, has taken great measures to be socially responsible. A leader in the tire industry, Giti works to lead by example and help other tire companies become more environmentally friendly.
What are the greatest sustainability projects that have been implemented by Giti?
Giti Tires uses green manufacturing to lessen any negative on the environment that their production has. Their goal is to make their production process as green as possible by reducing wastewater, waste materials, and lessening emissions.
Additionally, they have partnered with Conservation International (CI) and has donated $1 million towards conservation. Giti actively supports CI’s shark tagging efforts. This project helps track sharks and preserve their lives. In appreciation of Giti’s efforts, CI actually named a shark after Giti as a thank you. Teaming up with CI is something that most other manufacturers have not done, and it has let Giti expand its reach beyond just the automotive industry.
How does Giti minimize the environmental impact?
The tires themselves have been improved. They last longer now, and you can generally put more wear and tire on a tire than in years past. This means there are fewer tires produced and disposed of. Giti also worked to improve the means in which the tires are produced. The innovative production methods actually conserve energy and work to reduce waste. So, the tires help to conserve gas, last longer than other tires, and also are produced efficiently. All of this helps with sustainability and long term environmental concerns.
Toyota
Thanks to the Prius, Toyota has long been associated with green efforts and conservation measures. Toyota created the Prius to lessen the negative effects on the environment than a car with low gas mileage. The company has also taken other measures to protect nature.
Sustainability efforts of Toyota
Toyota is constantly working to establish a low-carbon emission society and leads the auto industry in this endeavor. Recognizing the importance of trying to fight off global warming, they take substantial efforts towards this goal. They also employ environmental management principles, including the preservation of diversity and the development of environmental specialists.
Impact on the environment
Toyota places a lot of importance on how it creates its products, in addition to just the products they put out. The process of making cars is just as important as the car itself.
By using more chemical substances in its products that harm the earth less than some other chemicals, everything Toyota produces naturally has less of a harsh effect on the environment than similar items produced by other manufacturers.
Obviously, Toyota’s efforts in sustainability extend beyond just the chemical substances. They also work to ensure tires and other components of the cars work as efficiently as possible in order to conserve gasoline and not wear out as fast. Toyotas are notorious for having a long life, meaning they do not need to be scrapped or recycled as often as some other models, thus reducing the impact on junkyards and on the environment as a whole.
Renault
Renault is another company that takes green measures in their production lines. They have actually been making cars since 1898 and have spent over 100 years perfecting their craft.
Anytime a company has been in business that long, you know they have spent a lot of effort and resources on creating the best products. This holds true at Renault, where not only do they make a quality product, but they do so with the goal of minimizing any negative effect on the environment that their products can have. Renault knows that if they want to be around another 100 years, they need to do their part to conserve resources.
Sustainability and how Renault is affecting the environment
At Renault, they use high-performance ecological processes, and they can manufacture their goods in a clean manner that does not affect the environment much.
They actively work to reduce greenhouse gasses, which will help slow global warming. Furthermore, Renault understands how cars can cause pollution, and actively work to make their cars as efficient as possible, thus reducing pollution. If every automotive manufacturer worked as hard as Renault at improving the way their cars affect pollution, we would have a lot less smog and bad air as a result of vehicles. Automotive makers should take note of the way Renault approaches solutions to the problem that is pollution.
The future at Renault
Working towards the future is a huge part of what Renault does. They are working towards driverless cars and electric vehicles, both of which would lessen their carbon footprint. The reduction of the overall carbon footprint is Renault’s top environmental goal. Electric vehicles are tops on Renault’s list as they drastically reduce pollution and also conserve the valuable commodity that is gasoline. If the world eventually runs out of gasoline, Renault is positioning itself to be a top vehicle manufacturer of electric cars, thus bringing the industry into the future.
Volkswagen
Another auto manufacturer actively working to improve its impact on the environment is Volkswagen. Most of us have heard of Volkswagen, as they are another leading auto manufacturer, and they are very focused on sustainment and the environment.
Volkswagen produces a wide variety of vehicles and has expanded its ownership in recent decades. As they work to continue their success in the coming decades, they have committed to creating sustainable vehicles, ensuring their carbon footprint is as low as possible.
Sustainability in the future at Volkswagen
They have set a goal to be a leader in the industry in terms of automotive production. They intend to achieve this goal by looking at the entire production cycle from cradle to grave. In other words, from the time the concept of a car is created, through the car’s production, and ultimately to when the car needs to be disposed and scrapped – all of that is under investigation as Volkswagen moves to make their cars in a way that does not harm the environment much.
In addition to production, they are also working towards making their cars burn less and less gas, as they acknowledge the need to conserve as much fuel as possible in order to have clean earth in the future.
One of the chief accomplishments is the recycling of certain pieces of equipment. Instead of discarding them for waste, Volkswagen has found ways to reuse some equipment. They can then sell these recycled parts at a lower price.
Denso
At Denso, they have taken great strides to run their business in a way that is positive for the environment. Denso is a global company, and its efforts affect the environment across the world. Because Denso has such a worldwide influence, they take pride in ensuring they take all necessary measures to produce sustainable products.
How Denso is working to reduce the environmental impact
Denso strives to make sure sustainable growth is achieved in an always changing environment by remaining in touch with how society is changing. Their research has led them to identify four priority areas, and thus they focus their efforts on electric vehicles, advanced safety/autonomous vehicles, connectivity, and factory automation/agriculture.
Denso focuses a lot on technology, understanding the impacts technology can have on the world. Using technology, they are working towards electronic vehicles and automated vehicles, thus reducing the worldwide carbon footprint on their production.
AAM
The leading Tier 1 global automotive supplier, AAM is another company in the automotive industry that has the power to change the entire world. As such, they focus a lot of effort into sustainability, and other companies would do themselves a service by taking note of the way that AAM operates their business.
Sustainability at AAM
The mission statement at AAM is to create a better and greener future, so they take environmental concerns and sustainability seriously enough to make it the number 1 goal of the company. Focusing heavily on energy conservation, AAM aims to conserve energy and improve sustainability by using less electricity and lowering their overall carbon footprint.
Energy, emissions, and water are three areas AAM is constantly looking to find ways to conserve and use less of. They have been successful in their efforts and continue to work towards improving the future.
Audi
Audi is another name brand on this list. Makers of fine automobiles, Audi has recognized the need to run an environmentally sustainable company. One of the most prominent international manufacturers, Audi recognizes they have a chance to change the world and lead the entire industry, and they have taken that seriously.
Audi’s Effect on the Environment
Audi launched a foundation in 2009 specifically towards improving its carbon footprint and reducing the negative impacts of auto production on the environment. Priding themselves on being the only car manufacturer with a foundation just for the environment, Audi truly does lead the industry, and other companies are following in their footsteps.
In addition to their practices, they are also contributing to the environmental education of others, so they are sharing and spreading their environmental and sustainability knowledge. With an eye to the future, Audi works with others in the industry to collaborate on a way to preserve the environment.
They have done things like lead a 30-day challenge just to get people to focus on the environment for 30 days and create ideas for improvement. After the challenge, they found several ideas that could be implemented and used in the future. Audi’s foundation is perhaps the single most important accomplishment on this list, and therefore they are in a position to be one of the most environmentally friendly companies in the industry for decades to come.
The overall effect of the automotive industry on the environment
The automotive industry is a field that has a direct impact on the earth. Cars are one of the biggest causes of smog and other pollutants in the world – just try driving through Los Angeles traffic during rush hour. Or, if you drove through New York City or Hong Kong during rush hour during the global pandemic, you would have noticed how clean the air was. This is because people were quarantined and staying at home. No cars on the road meant cleaner air.
With companies like Tesla leading the pack, there is hope for the future. More cars are being produced that are electric only, which greatly reduces the carbon footprint. Even cars that are still running on diesel or gasoline are now being produced more efficiently, making the production process cleaner. The vehicles themselves often consume less gasoline than previous models even to travel the same distance. Green Technology is the wave of the future, and the industry progress, we will continue to see the earth getting cleaner and air becoming fresher.
It is imperative for the future of the world that companies take green initiatives to reduce pollution and improve their carbon footprints. Companies are all ahead of the curve and actively work to ensure their production process and the vehicles themselves harm the environment as little as possible.
