CTNA Exceeds Environmental Goal in First Year

Continental Tire North America reports having officially exceeded its goal of increased compliance with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s SmartWay Transport Partnership during its first year of participation. Continental first joined the SmartWay Transport Partnership in June 2008 as a Shipper Partner, committing to reduce its environmental impacts from ground freight transportation. In joining the partnership, the tyre manufacturer agreed to use the Freight Logistics Environmental and Energy Tracking (FLEET) Performance Model for Shippers to quantify its environmental performance level. Continental was then required to maintain a score of at least 0.5 within the FLEET Performance Model.

According to Dominique Lacroix, CTNA director of supply chain operations, Continental’s initial goal within the partnership was to achieve a FLEET Performance Model score of at least 0.95 within three years of joining, reports Dominique Lacroix. However, Continental found that at the end of its first year of partnership, after shipping more than 24 million tyres to NAFTA countries, it had already achieved a score of 1.14 out of a maximum of 1.25. The score was verified by the EPA in June 2009.

“Exceeding our compliance goal with the SmartWay Transport Partnership means that Continental is doing its part to reduce air pollution and the environmental impacts from our supply chain operations,” Lacroix said. “We made it a consideration of the carrier selection process that fleets operate as SmartWay Transport Carriers when considering bids, and encouraged carriers within our existing base who were not already a part of the SmartWay programme to join. In doing so, we have achieved our goal to have the majority of our tire products shipped within these environmentally sensitive guidelines.”

The SmartWay Transport Partnership aims to save between 12.5 and 25 billion litres of diesel fuel per year by 2012, the equivalent of removing 12 million passenger cars from the road. In order to achieve this reduction, SmartWay Transport Carriers pledge to implement idle reduction strategies, improve aerodynamics, use advanced freight logistics practices, reduce vehicle and equipment weights, implement driver training and use SmartWay verified fuel efficient technologies including wide base and low rolling resistant tyres. Continental’s goals as a shipper partner are further complemented by its manufacture of SmartWay verified low rolling resistance tyres.

“When you combine Continental’s commitments to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions within our own supply chain with our advances in engineering that produce our low rolling resistance tyres, we are truly proud of our achievements in reducing our environmental footprint,” said Clif Armstrong, director of commercial vehicle tyre marketing for Continental – The Americas. “Our responsibility for minimising our impact on the environment is an important part of our corporate values. It extends over the entire lifecycle of a tyre, from sourcing our rubber through renewable raw materials to engineering a more fuel-efficient truck tyre product, then using shipping partners who have pledged to reduce their greenhouse gases and air pollution.”