Kone said the ’10 for 2010′ challenge is part of its overall Environmental Excellence Program, which provides guidelines for the company to minimize its carbon footprint and maximize eco-efficiency in all of its operations.
The company is implementing measures throughout its facilities in North America to reduce its consumption of electricity and natural gas. These steps include obtaining and entering local energy use data; completing an energy audit of the facility; preparing and implementing a local plan to reduce energy use; and sharing best practices with other facilities.
Eco-efficient solutions, fulfilling and exceeding ISO 14001 requirements, and demanding environmental excellence from all suppliers are the other elements that are included in the program, according to Kone.
Tim Walter, VP of EHS for the Americas, said: “Implementing this program is another demonstration of the priority we place on the continuous reduction of the environmental footprint of our business. In 2009, our Mobile (Alabama) District Office implemented similar guidelines and reduced energy consumption by 22%, so we know this is an achievable goal.”
To further its efforts in environmental commitment, Kone has discontinued manufacturing hydraulic elevator systems and has replaced them with the Machine Room-Less elevator solution utilizing the Kone EcoDisc hoisting machine, thereby saving half or more of the energy consumed by a traditional hydraulic or traction elevator.
