Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd. (TMUK) is one of the world’s largest car manufacturers. It is committed to tackling its environmental impact through a long-term and holistic approach to the total lifecycle of its products. It sets challenging environmental targets and has developed an Environmental Management System, gaining ISO 14001 accreditation in 1996, the first UK car manufacturing plant to do so.
In December 2000, TMUK created an ‘Environmental Action Plan’ with the aim to achieve the best environmental performance in the UK of all car manufacturing plants. As part of this, the company’s target was to reduce water consumption by 23% to 2m3 per car by 2005.
To do this, TMUK worked in partnership with Haden Freeman and Nalco, water treatment specialists, to install a reverse osmosis plant that recycled wastewater discharged from TMUK’s vehicle painting process and used it in boilers and compressors. This reduced the water consumed and also reduced the amount of water discharged to sewers.
Other projects, which have contributed to waster usage reduction across the company, include rainwater harvesting and the elimination of water consuming processes at one of TMUK’s factories.
To encourage employee involvement on TMUK’s environmental performance, the company holds internal awards where employees compete against each other to suggest ideas to improve TMUK’s environmental impact. The team who is judged to have had the best idea each year is flown to Japan to take part in a world-wide continuous improvement conference.
TMUK also shows external environmental leadership through its membership of the Manufacturing Environment Working Group, and as a founder signatory to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
