Introduction
Resource Conservation and Emissions Reduction
Welcome to the Operations section of the Bridgestone Americas Environmental report. The purpose of this section is to provide a closer look at the many activities our manufacturing facilities are doing to operate more efficiently, reduce environmental impact, and adopt innovative processes that provide better, safer, and efficient products for our customers. We are proud of the continued progress in our operational performance and pleased to share our story with you.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies. The work of preparing international standards is normally carried out through ISO technical committees. The scope of the ISO 14001 international standard includes specifications for:
- Requirements for an Environmental Management System (EMS)
- Environmental policy and objectives formation
- Taking into account legal and other requirements and significant environmental impacts
- Applies to significant environmental aspects that
- The organization can control and
- Which it can be expected to have influence
The ISO 14001 international standard is based upon the methodology known as Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA). PDCA can be briefly described as follows:
- Plan: Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver the results in accordance with the organization’s environmental policy.
- Do: Implement the process.
- Check: Monitor and measure processes against environmental policy, objectives, targets, legal and other requirements, and report the results.
- Act: Take actions to continually improve the performance of the EMS.
ISO 14001 certification continues to provide a framework for EMS implementation at Bridgestone Americas manufacturing facilities and maintaining ISO 14001 certification remains a key management objective. ISO 14001 helps ensure that all teammates recognize their environmental management responsibilities, not just those with “Environmental” in their title.
Bridgestone Americas requires all manufacturing facilities to obtain ISO 14001 certification within 2 years of our ownership. Currently 37 BSA manufacturing facilities are certified.
National Environmental Performance Track
In June 2000, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) created the National Environmental Performance Track program. Performance Track is a voluntary program in which the US EPA rewards both public and private facilities that consistently exceed regulatory requirements, work closely with their communities, and excel in protecting the environment and public health. A core principle of Performance Track is that companies with a history of beyond compliance behavior and dedication to continuous improvement should be treated differently than other facilities. To foster continuous improvement at member facilities, Performance Track offers incentives such as recognition on both local and national levels, low inspection status, and regulatory changes to help ease reporting requirements and reduce other administrative costs.
The requirements for acceptance into the Performance Track program for a three-year period include proving a record of regulatory compliance, having an independently audited EMS, showing a history of past achievement and a commitment to continuous improvement (two past pollution prevention projects, commitment to complete four additional pollution prevention projects over a three-year period) and demonstrating public outreach including an annual performance report
Bridgestone Americas, always an environmental leader, was the first tire manufacturer to participate in Performance Track. The following (6) BFNT and (4) FSDP facilities are currently accepted into the U.S. EPA Performance Track program (stars indicate charter membership):
| Company | Facility | Year Accepted |
| BFNT | ♦ Aiken, SC | 2001 |
| BFNT | ♦ Warren County, TN | 2001 |
| BFNT | ♦ Des Moines, IA | 2001 |
| BFNT | Bloomington, IL | 2003 |
| BFNT | LaVergne, TN | 2005 |
| BFNT | Wilson, NC | 2006 |
| FSDP | Salt Lake City, UT | 2007 |
| FSDP | DeForest, WI | 2007 |
| FSDP | Youngwood, PA | 2007 |
| FSDP | Corsicana, TX | 2007 |
Additional information on Performance Track can be found at the following website:
http://www.epa.gov/performancetrack/index.htm
Additional information on Bridgestone Americas facilities’ annual performance reports can be found at the following website:
https://yosemite.epa.gov/opei/ptrack.nsf/vaMembersSortPages/faMembersByPar...
In addition to Performance Track, Bridgestone Americas manufacturing facilities participate in many state and local programs that focus on environmental excellence and improvement. Some examples include the American Chestnut Foundation, Clean Utah, TP3 (Tennessee Pollution Prevention Partnership), Industria Limpia, South Carolina Environmental Excellence Program, and Cumberland River Compact. To find more about any of these organizations, please find the appropriate link in our Links section.
Performance Track fits naturally into Bridgestone Americas’ environmental philosophy, which includes a policy of high standards and continuous improvement in minimizing our footprint on the natural world. We focus on minimizing waste, emissions, and energy use, while also seeking opportunities to improve the environment in our communities. Key indicators of environmental footprint are:
- Total Waste (amounts recycled and discharged)
- Water usage and waste water
- Energy usage and CO2 emissions
We are proud to say that since we began systematically recording company-wide data in 2002, we have significantly reduced these footprint measures for each unit of production, as the following figures illustrate.
Bridgestone Americas family of companies is focused on reducing waste from all sources. Reduction of waste can be accomplished by increasing the amount of waste that is recycled, i.e. using it again for another purpose, and by decreasing the amount of waste that is discharged.
By establishing the amount of waste recycled and waste discharged in 2002 as a baseline value of “100”, we can easily view the decrease for each subsequent year. Figure 1 below demonstrates that Bridgestone Americas both decreased the amount of waste discharged and increased the amount of waste that is recycled. The overall result is a trend in the amount of total waste.
Bridgestone Americas facilities also strive to reduce the amount of water used in manufacturing processes as well as the amount of waste water discharged.
Between the years 2002 and 2006, overall water usage in manufacturing has decreased each year as a factor of production efficiency. By establishing the total water usage per production in 2002 as a baseline value of “100”, we can easily track the decrease for each subsequent year.
Between the years of 2002 and 2006, less waste water was discharged from manufacturing activities as a measure of production efficiency. By establishing the total waste water volume per production in 2002 as a baseline value of “100”, the following figure illustrates progress for each subsequent year
An example of creativity in water conservation is the floor scrubbing water recycling system at the Warren County, TN, tire plant, which reuses water up to three times. This system has cut soap usage in half and allows for the recycling of 2000-4000 gallons of water per month. Continuous improvement projects like this help drive year-to-year savings of thousands of dollars in resource costs, while reducing the burden on publicly-owned wastewater treatment plants and streams.
Bridgestone Americas has long recognized that every bit of energy saved benefits the bottom line for both our company and our communities by saving money, reducing emissions and reducing the burden on power infrastructure and scarce natural resources.
As compared to 2002 levels, Bridgestone Americas’ products required about 4% less energy to produce in 2006, as illustrated by the graph below. The search for improvements in energy efficiency is never-ending for Bridgestone Americas - it's just the right thing to do.
Bridgestone Americas teammates focus on energy efficiency by tracking all forms of energy use in manufacturing, warehousing, retail stores, owned distribution fleets, and office buildings.
Improved energy efficiency, and resultant carbon dioxide emissions have significantly decreased since 2002, (despite a slight increase in 2003). By establishing the CO2 emissions per production in 2002 as a baseline value of “100”, we can easily view the year-to-year trends in emissions.
Examples of individual Bridgestone Americas plants efforts to reduce net carbon footprint are too numerous to mention here. However, one exceptional example is the Wilson County, NC tire plant’s use of methane gas, which is produced from the breakdown of waste in a local municipal solid waste landfill, as fuel for producing steam heat. This innovative source of energy will capture and destroy numerous tons of carbon-intensive methane gas.
Energy efficiency and continuous improvement is nothing new for Bridgestone Americas. For example, our plants are now about twice as efficient and our tires now last 4 times as long as they did in 1975. Translating these improvements into energy savings, the average American house could run for about 17 days just from the energy savings achieved in producing 1 set of tires as compared to 1975 rates.
