Ninth Annual Sustainability Report Released
Ford's ninth sustainability report, “Blueprint for Sustainability,” is now available at www.ford.com/go/sustainability. This is Ford’s annual report on environmental and social performance, focusing on key issues for the company, with discussion and data related to a wide range of critical topics. Some of the topics covered include:
Reducing CO2 Emissions
Ford has a plan for reducing CO2 emissions by 30 percent by 2030. It includes near-, mid- and long-term product and technology actions that incorporate fuel-saving technologies into the company’s product cycle plan and continuing research on the development of breakthrough technologies. Since 2000, Ford has reduced its global operational energy use by 30 percent and CO2 emissions from its facilities by 39 percent.
In addition, Ford of Europe has launched its ECOnetic vehicle portfolio, which will achieve class-leading CO2 emissions levels.
Improving Fuel Efficiency
As gas prices climb, Ford continues to improve the fuel efficiency of its vehicles. In fact, the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) of Ford cars and trucks (U.S.) improved 5.9 percent for the 2007 model year compared to the 2006 model year.
In 2007, Ford unveiled EcoBoost, an internal combustion engine technology that uses direct injection and turbo-charging technology to improve vehicle fuel economy without sacrificing performance.
Also in 2007, Ford and Southern California Edison announced a multimillion-dollar, multi-year evaluation program to advance the commercialization of Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles.
Corporate Responsibility
The sustainability report describes Ford’s new “Urban Mobility Networks”, a pilot program that is exploring how to coordinate a variety of transportation options and provide vital real-time information to individuals living in densely populated urban centers. Ford and the University of Michigan, along with other private and public partners, will launch the first pilots in Chennai and Bangalore, India and Cape Town, South Africa.
Also detailed in the report, Ford’s commitment to human rights and other important responsibilities of global companies reinforced by membership in the United Nations Global Compact in April of 2008.
Tags: corporate responsibility, EcoBoost, fuel economy, sustainability
