Ford’s Oakville, Ont., assembly plant goes landfill-free
by Canadian Manufacturing Staff
Becomes automaker's first assembly plant in North America to earn landfill-free designation
OAKVILLE, Ont.—Ford Motor Co.’s assembly plant in Oakville, Ont., now sends no operational waste to landfills, making it the automaker’s first assembly plant in North America to achieve the designation.
Ford’s assembly plant in Oakville, Ont. PHOTO Ford
The Oakville plant, home to the Ford Edge and Flex models, as well as the Lincoln MKX and MKT, joins Ford’s two engine plants in Windsor, Ont., to go landfill-free, making all its manufacturing facilities in Canada landfill-free.
Its Essex and Windsor sites, both located in Windsor, achieved landfill-free status in 2012 and 2013, respectively.
“Ford is very proud that all its Canadian manufacturing facilities are sending zero waste to landfill,” Ford’s Americas president, Joe Hinrichs, said in a statement. “We are expanding our manufacturing footprint in Oakville while decreasing our environmental footprint.”
In 2013, Ford announced a $700-million investment in the facility that will see it transformed into an advanced manufacturing facility with global platform capability.
That same year, about 2,000 tonnes of wood, cardboard, paper and plastic was recycled at the facility, saving more than 5,000 cubic metres of landfill space and more than 32 million litres of water, according to Ford.
“Zero waste-to-landfill is made possible through the support of our entire team and a deep commitment to sustainability throughout our plant,” said Will Cowell, manager of the Oakville plant.
“Many years of process improvement to reduce, reuse and recycle in every way led to this achievement and we’re just as committed to continuing on this path with the same rigor that brought us here.”
Ford’s Oakville plant joins 20 other Ford facilities around the globe that maintain zero waste-to-landfill status.
The move is part of the automaker’s commitment to reducing global waste to landfill per vehicle produced by 40 per cent from 2011 to 2016.
It has already cut global per vehicle waste to landfill by 40 per cent from 2007 to 2011.
“Reducing waste is a crucial part of our strategy toward building a world-class manufacturing system,” said Anthony Hoskins, Ford’s director of manufacturing. “We are leveraging the power of our Ford Production System by applying standard waste reduction processes across our facilities.”
