VOLVO Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) has announced that its Braås facility in Sweden is the first to achieve the company’s new Climate Efficient Site certification.
This marks the latest achievement for the site, which became the first in the construction industry to achieve a carbon neutral operation back in 2014, leveraging renewable energy sources including a district heating system powered by 100% renewable biofuels and electricity from hydropower. In 2018, the site was declared landfill-free.
The global internal certificate is designed to provide all production sites with a stretch goal to help the company meet its Science Based Targets commitments and covers all of scope 1 and 2, and scope 3 emissions that are within the site’s ability to influence. The requirements cover direct and indirect emissions to the site, emissions generated in the production of goods, services and fuels, and energy and waste management.
Melker Jernberg, president of Volvo CE, said, “Our commitment to drive the decarbonisation of construction remains firm which is why we constantly push ourselves to set new benchmarks for sustainability beyond the industry status quo. We believe in leading by example with concrete action, starting with ourselves.
“The employees at Braås keep demonstrating what can be achieved with clear targets and a culture of learning and involvement, where everyone is enabled and encouraged to make meaningful contributions.”
The main groundwork in Braås was an inventory of all carbon emissions connected to site activities across its approximately 60,000 sqm of manufacturing buildings and offices. This mapping helped its employees to engage in targeted improvements throughout manufacturing, energy systems, materials handling, product testing, waste management, and transport and distribution.
Environment engineer Lisa Krondahl explained, “Change is possible when people are dedicated to continuously seek improvements and act on them, and here people really want to make a difference. In 2023, we aimed for 40 environmental and energy improvements – our teams topped 120. This year, we set the target to find 100 more ways to improve, and to date over 140 have been implemented. Sustainability is embedded in our teams, our processes and the way we operate, and it guides our decision making.”
The Braås site has been running on renewable energy for many years, but the certification requirements helped discover new ways to level up its energy management.
Other initiatives to reduce emissions at the site include: using only biofuels for machines produced and used at the site; collaborating with suppliers and contractors to improve work practices and inbound logistics; enhanced waste management focusing on waste reduction, sorting, and removal, as well as reusing and recycling; improved quality of wastewater to allow the sludge to be used as fertiliser after treatment; enhanced paint process, for example using abatement technology; and installing electric charging points and promoting ride-share programmes to help employees travel more sustainably.”
The sustainability measures at Braås have progressed alongside expansion at the site to accelerate the phased shift to electromobility for articulated haulers.
