Bentley Motors first to receive South Pole’s “Net Zero Plastic to Nature” Status

Bentley’s industry-leading drive to assess, scale back and mitigate the worldwide plastic footprint of its logistics packaging, car safety and aftersales packaging was analysed by unbiased, Switzerland-based specialists on the South Pole organisation.

The in-depth evaluation coated all the pieces from operational macro-plastic components packaging utilized in logistics and manufacturing, to the disposal of plastic safety downstream at international dealerships. It additionally assessed micro-plastic emissions from tyre abrasion as a part of the logistics and product lifecycle, figuring out a complete plastic footprint of 165.4 tonnes. The audit discovered that almost all of plastic waste was already recycled appropriately and made suggestions for in-region enhancements to deal with the small quantity of non-processed waste which was recognized by means of the evaluation.

To safe the standing, Bentley has invested in licensed items that help two of South Pole’s tasks centered on growing specialist plastic waste assortment and recycling infrastructure tasks. These are with Neela Saga in India and Second Life in Thailand. This motion ensures that the total quantity of non-processed plastic waste discovered within the 2021 examine has been successfully mitigated.

Peter Bosch, Member of the Board for Manufacturing at Bentley Motors, explains: “Our drive towards a plastic-free future is an essential part of our Beyond100 strategy and this pioneering collaboration with South Pole has helped us evaluate the impact of the steps we’ve been taking to reduce and recycle plastic reduce around our site by examining every aspect of our logistics value chain. From the bubble wrap and foam used to package inbound parts, to the car body covers and shrink wrap processes employed on vehicle protection and aftersales materials, no stone has been left unturned and we’ve been able to make quick and effective changes.

“For example, we have reduced the amount of plastic parts protection on outbound products from 13 items to six. By removing unnecessary items like vinyl wheel protection and wiper blade covers, we’ve removed 12 tonnes of plastic from our outbound packaging operations in a year – and we’re ensuring that where plastic is still needed to ensure our cars arrive in perfect condition, it is minimal, lightweight and has low CO₂ impact.

“Other measures, such as reducing unnecessary packaging for items moved around site, have reduced plastic shrink-wrap waste by 86 per cent. Even the plastic banding we use to secure items on pallets has gone under the microscope, as we’ve carried out tests on a cardboard replacement to ensure that it is equally as effective. We also recognised that one of the greatest contributors is inbound logistics packaging, so we are working closely with our suppliers to reduce packaging on inbound parts – as well as empowering colleagues to quickly and effectively reuse packaging around site.

“As a global brand this process has helped us gain a broader perspective and insight into our footprint out in our regions and we will follow with great interest the progress of the two plastic waste and recycling projects our credits will support in Thailand and India. Our next step is to broaden the scope to cover other aspects of our business.”

Announced in 2020, Bentley’s ground-breaking Beyond100 technique targets sustainable mobility management, reinventing each side of the business. The goal is to be end-to-end carbon impartial by 2030, with the Crewe headquarters local weather constructive thereafter.

South Pole was established in 2006 and helps organisations world wide develop complete emission discount programmes and techniques that flip local weather motion into long-term business alternatives. It is aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement and UN sustainability improvement objectives.