VW cuts energy used to produce vehicles by 30%
Car manufacturer Volkswagen (VW) aims to reduce the environmental impact of its vehicles and components by 45% by 2025, via its Think Blue. Factory environmental programme, said Thomas Ulbrich, board member responsible for VW Production and Logistics. The programme has already achieved average reductions of almost 30% across energy, waste, CO2, water and solvent emissions, saving more than €130m ($146m) in global production over the past six years. Systems including ventilation and lighting are next to be reviewed.
To date, Think Blue. Factory. has received more than 30 awards—including the National Energy Globe as the best project in Germany, the GreenTec Award for energy efficiency and water-saving measures in production and the Sustainovation Award. As of the end of 2016, Volkswagen had achieved an average reduction of 29.2% in environmental impact: energy -23.5%; CO 2 - 28.6%; waste -58.6%; water -27.5%; and solvent emissions -7.6%.

The Volkswagen brand has set itself new, ambitious targets for reducing the environmental impact of production. By 2025, vehicles and components are to be produced in a way which is 45% more environmentally compatible than in 2010, the reference year for the current Think Blue. Factory. environmental program. ( Earlier post .)

We reached our environmental target of producing our vehicles 25 percent more sustainable by 2018 before the date set. We now intend to reduce environmental impact by a further 20 percent by 2025. We are on the way to the resource-optimized factory at all the locations of the brand. —Thomas Ulbrich, Member of the Brand Board of Management responsible for Production and Logistics

With Think Blue. Factory., Volkswagen launched the first program for environmentally sustainable production. 5,300 measures to reduce emissions and use resources more efficiently have been implemented. 16 existing paint shops have been optimized and the base load energy consumption of the plants during non-production times fell by 15 percent on average. Eight international locations have taken 100% of their power requirements from renewable sources since the start of the program. Thanks to lower consumption, the environmental program has already saved more than €130 million (US$146 million) in production throughout the world over a period of six years.

The approach adopted means that the plants which form part of Volkswagen’s global production network systematically exchange information on their respective success stories and adopt the most appropriate measures from each other. In future, not only compressed air systems, cold networks and cooling towers but also ventilation and lighting systems are to be reviewed at all locations with a view to achieving further savings.

The Volkswagen brand is not only adapting its environmental targets in quantitative terms but also in quantitative terms. It will be basing its targets more closely on the Paris Climate Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.