Toyota Kicks Off Sustainable Plant Activities in Europe

As part of global efforts to slash environmental impacts, Toyota has kicked off Sustainable Plant activities in Europe at two manufacturing companies in France and the United Kingdom. TMMF (Valenciennes, France) and TMUK (Burnaston and Deeside, UK) will ramp up efforts in Europe by serving as the industry benchmark for the sustainable production of vehicles and engines. Each plant will pilot activities to help realise ambitious 2010 environmental targets, including a 25% reduction in water use by Toyota’s European manufacturing network*. Successful activities will be adopted as standards by Toyota plants globally.

‘Environmentally-responsible vehicles must come from environmentally-responsible plants’, said Didier Leroy, Executive Vice-President of TME and President of TMMF. ‘A Sustainable Plant is a powerful initiative to help our company significantly reduce the environmental burden of vehicle manufacturing. The combined capability of TMUK and TMMF means that we can pilot more efficient processes and technological innovations at every stage of vehicle and engine production.’

Established in 2001, TMMF represents a ‘new generation’ Toyota plant, which was developed according to strict eco-friendly design and construction standards. TMMF’s ‘green, clean and lean’ manufacturing philosophy continues to set new industry benchmarks: the French-based plant uses just 1.13 m3 of water per Toyota Yaris produced – the lowest water use per vehicle manufactured by any Toyota plant in the world. TMMF is now investigating the use of renewable energy, such as solar power, generated on-site as a new measure to reduce CO2 emissions.

Backed by more than 15 years of European manufacturing experience, TMUK has reduced waste produced per vehicle by over 60% since 1994 and planted over 350,000 trees and shrubs on-site. A recent trial has realised a 25% reduction in paint booth energy use – a saving equal to the average annual electricity consumption of some 5,000 UK households. This innovation has earned recognition from the European Commission’s Sustainable Energy Campaign, and will be phased in at Toyota’s plants in France and Turkey. Adding to this success, TMUK this month was awarded a gold ranking in corporate responsibility from Business in the Community.

Toyota began its sustainable plant activities – which emphasise the role of nature in creating production sites that are in harmony with their natural surroundings – in Japan last year. These activities will be introduced in Europe based on three key objectives: a) achieving groundbreaking environmental performance through innovative technologies and kaizen (continuous improvement) activities; b) reducing CO2 by using renewable energy including biomass and natural energy sources, such as solar power and wind power; and c) contributing to local communities and conserving the natural environment by planting trees on and around plant sites.

Since 2001, Toyota has reduced the average energy consumption per vehicle built in Europe by 44%, achieving the lowest levels of any volume vehicle manufacturer in Europe^. TME’s European plants have achieved zero-waste-to-landfill and secured ISO 14001-accreditation – the international reference for environmental management. TME has also announced revised environmental targets for its European manufacturing network, having achieved its 2010 European Environmental Action Plan, three years ahead of schedule