Without making any major investments, the Kinston factory in the U.S. exceeded its energy saving goals a year ahead of target. The plant is just one example of the effectiveness of the Electrolux Green Spirit program.
Employee engagement and improving energy management are two key success factors in reducing energy. This is how the Electrolux plant at Kinston USA reduced its overall energy use by nearly 16% between 2008 and 2010, and its natural gas intake was cut by almost 30%. During this time, absolute energy use fell by 35% while financial savings amounted to more than SEK 2.5 m.
Green spirit in action
Kinston’s initiative was run as part of Green Spirit – one of the programs Electrolux has implemented to meet its sustainability goals. It includes not only lowering the company’s environmental footprint but also reducing costs and risks in Electrolux workplaces.
At Kinston, this meant running the processes as efficiently as possible, switching off all equipment when not in use, lowering the plant's demand for compressed air and installing motion sensors for lighting. Leak-a-Day engaged engineering and maintenance personnel to find and repair a compressed air leak every day.
Kinston was among the first Electrolux operations to achieve the Gold level in the Electrolux Manufacturing System Energy site certification – a well deserved pat on the back for every team member.
In total, eight Electrolux factories demonstrated gold standard performance.