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DaimlerChrysler Invests $1.3 Billion in the Environment

19 August 1999

DaimlerChrysler Invests $1.3 Billion in the Environment

    Environmental protection is a corporate goal
    Integration is proceeding rapidly
    Advanced technology reduces environmental impact

    AUBURN HILLS, Mich. and STUTTGART, Germany, Aug. 19 --
DaimlerChrysler AG spent $1.3 billion on environmental protection in 1998,
according to the company's Annual Environmental Report.  Most of that
expenditure, about $813 million, funded research and development of activities
to further reduce emissions.
    Expenditures on environmental efforts have produced major improvements in
reducing the impact of the company's products on the environment.
    Production of Mercedes-Benz passenger cars increased nearly 80 percent
between 1992 and 1998.  Production of vehicles at the former Chrysler
Corporation rose more than 40 percent over the same period.  At the same
time, emissions from DaimlerChrysler production facilities decreased
substantially.  For example, emissions of sulfur dioxide company-wide and of
substances listed in the U.S. Toxic Release Inventory were both down more
than 50 percent.
    The Annual Environmental Report was released August 19 at the company
headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan, by Chief Environmental Officer
Professor Werner Pollmann.
    Research and development has focused on environmentally friendly drive
systems such as the fuel cell and hybrid powertrains.  For example,
DaimlerChrysler introduced its latest fuel cell vehicle, NECAR 4, in
Washington in March.  Research on methods of improving conventional spark
ignition and diesel engines is also continuing.
    At its production facilities, DaimlerChrysler has had major successes with
a decontamination and remediation project at a site in Detroit that is now
home to a state-of-the-art engine plant.  At the Mercedes-Benz plant in
Dusseldorf, Germany, the introduction of a new paint recycling process has
reduced waste and disposal costs and lowered the company's expenditures on
paint products.
    The integration of the two companies in the area of environmental
protection has been proceeding well, Pollmann said.  The Environmental Post
Merger Integration (PMI) team -- one of 98 managing the integration of the two
companies -- has completed its work.
    One result of the PMI team's work is a set of environmental guidelines
that are to be followed by all employees at all of the company's locations.
These guidelines were adopted by the Board of Management in July.  They
establish environmental protection as a goal of the company, describing it as
an "integral part of a corporate strategy aimed at increasing value over the
long term."
    Pollmann called for continued cooperation between industry and government,
as illustrated by recent voluntary programs such as the National Low Emission
Vehicle program, the California Fuel Cell Partnership, and the company's work
with the government of Iceland to develop a hydrogen and fuel cell based
economy.
    Pollmann said that DaimlerChrysler will make its greatest contribution to
environmental protection through continued leadership in research and
development of advanced technology, the production of affordable, fuel
efficient, low emission vehicles, and the design and operation of clean
manufacturing facilities.
    The 120-page environmental report is divided into a magazine section with
18 reports on current environmental topics and a section containing facts and
figures.  Some of the figures are difficult to compare due to the different
reporting requirements in the United States and Germany.
    The magazine section of the report was written by journalism students in
Europe and the United States.
    The report can be obtained at no cost from the DaimlerChrysler offices in
Auburn Hills and Stuttgart.