{"id":5948,"date":"2022-12-01T10:40:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-01T09:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/?p=5948"},"modified":"2022-12-05T18:27:46","modified_gmt":"2022-12-05T17:27:46","slug":"straight-through-the-alps-by-rail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/2022\/12\/straight-through-the-alps-by-rail\/","title":{"rendered":"Straight Through the Alps by Rail"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

At its international sites, Corteco has launched a wide range of sustainability projects involving \u201cgreen electricity,\u201d reduced paper use, and new methods of transport and packaging, and won a GROWTTH award. CO2 emissions have been reduced by many tons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery little bit helps,\u201d as the saying goes. Or to put it another way, even fairly small returns can make a\u00a0difference and add up to larger ones. The more the better, of course. The impact can be massive if numerous projects are underway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2018s true for Corteco\u2019s sustainability initiative as well. A unit of the Freudenberg Group, Corteco is the leading international supplier of replacement auto parts to the independent market. There\u2019s a long list of sustainable activities as well as projects promoting energy efficiency and cutting resource consumption and CO2 emissions at the company \u2013 whether at its main warehouse, known as the Central Distribution Center or CDC, in Hirschberg, Germany or in Milan in the United States, Nantiat in France or Pinerolo in Italy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They include measures that are effective yet comparatively easy to carry out. For example, the Hirschberg facility relies solely on \u201cgreen electricity.\u201d In Milan and Nantiat, warehouses are now illuminated with LED lighting. Or motion sensors make sure that the lights are only on when they are needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, plastic waste can easily be reduced when employees use their own refillable water bottles at a refill station \u2013 as they are doing in Milan \u2013 instead of discarding empty single-use bottles. The use of plastic can be reduced in the packaging area by using packaging tape made of reinforced paper instead of plastic. Hirschberg has taken this approach, eliminating 60 kilograms of CO2 emissions per year. Big plans for packaging are in the works at Nantiat. For example, environmentally friendly packaging materials are replacing foils and transparent blister packs for flat seals and oil drain plugs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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400,000 Plastic Bags Eliminated<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Measures that require changes in work processes are especially challenging. Corteco can chalk up numerous successes in this area as well. For example, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies (FST) bestowed the first-ever GROWTTH Award in the \u201cSustainability\u201d category on a Corteco project in Hirschberg for 2021. The facility eliminated the use of plastic bags for the shipment of small quantities. Nearly 400,000 bags were used annually \u2013 but no longer. The solution involves smart picking based on a clearly defined packing plan. It is saving the equivalent of 45 tons of CO2 per year. One positive side effect: Packaging is faster without plastic bags.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Milan, a reorganization of the picking and packing process for one product group is reducing the distances employees have to travel. It is making the work safer and more comfortable, not to mention faster, less costly, and \u2013 thanks to the elimination of internal transport by warehouse vehicles \u2013 more environmentally friendly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Award-worthy: Corteco\u2019s sustainability-related \u00adactivities. Dr. Matthias Sckuhr, COO\/CTO (above, center), thanked \u00ademployees for their commitment.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Nearly Paperless on Route<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The paperless office is a major issue, not just to improve efficiency but to protect the environment as well. Hirschberg\u2019s Customer Service department has almost reached a paperless state. It used to print 20-page packing lists and delivery documents in duplicate, but now nearly everything is digital. The reorganization has had a positive impact on its balance sheet: a decline of 11,000 euros in costs and 1,100 kilograms in the amount CO2 generated. The project is a great example of how sustainability pays off financially. The Natiat facility cut its use of paper sharply last year as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The potential for greater energy efficiency at Corteco\u2019s Pinerolo facility, which is just a few years old, has largely been exhausted. So the focus here has been on employees\u2019 behavior, specifically their commutes. In 2021, the switch to bicycles was the centerpiece of the community\u2019s \u201cMove on Pinerolo\u201d initiative, supported by local companies, organizations and the city administration. Pedaling to work is not only environmentally friendly; the physical activity promotes good health. This year, the goal of the city\u2019s \u201cCarpool is cool\u201d campaign is to get commuters into ridesharing groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pinerolo is also one of the scenes of another major transportation project \u2013 one that involves goods, not people. Shipments have been shifted from roads to rails. Containers are no longer being moved by truck several times a week over long distances through the Alps from the European CDC in Hirschberg. This works in reverse as well. The savings per year: 17,000 tons of CO2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FST viewed the employees\u2019 commitment as award-worthy. In July, Corteco received the \u201cSustainability Gold GROWTTH Award 2021,\u201d which was bestowed for the first time. Dr. Matthias Sckuhr, FST\u2018s Chief Operations\/Chief Technology Officer thanked Corteco employees and presented the award and the accompanying check.<\/p>\n

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At its international sites, Corteco has launched a wide range of sustainability projects involving \u201cgreen electricity,\u201d reduced paper use, and new methods of transport and packaging, and won a GROWTTH award. CO2…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5560,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[407,102,274],"tags":[403],"powerkit_post_featured":[],"class_list":["post-5948","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-corteco-en","category-global-en","category-sustainability","tag-edition-01_2023-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5948","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5948"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5948\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5960,"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5948\/revisions\/5960"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5948"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5948"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5948"},{"taxonomy":"powerkit_post_featured","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sw.fst.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/powerkit_post_featured?post=5948"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}