- Heat Recovery from Top Coat Oven in Paint Shop will reduce energy consumption by 4953 MWh/a and CO2 emissions by 1013 tons/a
- Energy savings from this Volkswagen Think Blue. Factory. project are equivalent to the energy consumed by nearly 1300 Indian households on an average in a year*
- Mr. Andreas Lauenroth, Executive Director – Technical, Volkswagen India Private Limited and Head of Volkswagen Plant in Chakan said, “The Heat Recovery from our oven in Paint Shop is major breakthrough in our efforts for achieving cleaner manufacturing. The continuous efforts undertaken by our Think Blue. Factory. ambassadors are paying off in the right way.”
Volkswagen Pune Plant is one of the 27 Volkswagen automotive manufacturing facilities worldwide that follows the ‘Think Blue. Factory.’ initiative that aims towards achieving higher environment-friendly manufacturing. Through this initiative, Volkswagen aims at reducing the impact of its production process on the environment by 25% per car globally. Volkswagen Pune Plant has been working towards these goals since 2012. The impact on environment through manufacturing processes is measured across five key areas of ‘Energy Consumption’, ‘CO2 Emissions’, ‘Water Consumption’, ‘Waste Generation’ and ‘VOC Emissions’. Volkswagen Pune Plant has undertaken a number of projects and successfully implemented them to record remarkable results.
Heat Recovery at Top Coat Oven brings laudable results
The major Think Blue. Factory. project of 2015 is the new Heat Recovery Unit (heat exchanger) that was commissioned at the exhaust end of the Top Coat Oven in Paint Shop. The sustainable results of this project were achieved by generating hot water using the exhaust flue gases which are vented out at 320 degree centigrade. This hot water is then used for heating application in Pre-treatment process in the Paint Shop itself. As a result, 80% reduction in hot water generation for this purpose was achieved that saved 492,483 SCM of Natural Gas consumption and 37 MWh/a of electricity as well as reduced CO2 emissions by 1013 tons/a. The savings in consumption of Natural Gas are equivalent to 4916 MWh/a. On an average this translates to the energy consumed by nearly 1300 Indian households in a year.*
Commenting on the achievement from the new project, Mr. Andreas Lauenroth, Executive Director – Technical, Volkswagen India Private Limited, said “The Heat Recovery from our oven in Paint Shop is major breakthrough in our efforts for achieving cleaner manufacturing. Volkswagen Pune Plant is moving with the right pace to achieve and surpass the targets set for 2018 under Think Blue. Factory. programme. This year, we will come closer to our target of contributing to the 25% global reduction in this respect.”
Think Blue. Factory. Ambassadors: The catalysts for savings
To facilitate idea generation and implementation of such ideas for savings under Think Blue. Factory. programme, 32 ambassadors from various departments of Volkswagen Pune Plant have been appointed. Such ambassadors from Plant Engineering and Paint Shop initiated the project of Heat Recovery in the Paint Shop. Mr. Andreas Lauenroth further added, “Sustainability and cleaner manufacturing processes have become a part of our lifestyle at Volkswagen Pune Plant. The continuous efforts undertaken by our Think Blue. Factory. ambassadors are paying off in the right way.”
(**Ref statistics: Government Of India Executive Summary Power Sector January-15 by Ministry of Power, Central Electricity Authority, New Delhi and considering on an average 4 people/household)
About ‘Think Blue’
‘Think Blue’ is more than just a concept or strategy. It is a holistic approach adopted by Volkswagen that embodies the goal of creating environmentally friendly products and solutions, encouraging more eco-conscious behaviour and contributing to a sustainable future. It’s about being more responsible on the road and more environmentally conscious – not just in our cars, but everywhere, every day.
About ‘Think Blue. Factory.’
‘Think Blue. Factory.’ is an addition to the Volkswagen ‘Think Blue.’ portfolio including key measures in the area of vehicle production. The program, which is concerned with efficiency improvements in production and the expansion of environmentally aware energy supplies, addresses all employees at the plants.
About Volkswagen Group India: With its headquarters in Pune, Maharashtra, the Volkswagen Group is represented by five passenger car brands in India: Audi, Lamborghini, Porsche, ŠKODA, and Volkswagen. The Volkswagen Group has been present in India for the last 14 years and began its India journey with the entry of the ŠKODA brand in 2001. The Audi brand and Volkswagen brand entered India in 2007, while Porsche brand and Lamborghini brand followed in 2012. Each brand has its own character and operates as an independent entity in the market. Volkswagen Group India has over 25 models in India and over 240 dealerships and is operating through two plants – Pune and Aurangabad. The Pune Plant has a manufacturing capacity of 130,000 cars per year (in current two-shift system) and is currently manufacturing Volkswagen Polo and Vento and ŠKODA Rapid. The Aurangabad Plant caters to various premium and luxury models of Audi, ŠKODA and Volkswagen sold in India and has an annual capacity of approximately 89,000. Volkswagen Group India is a part of Volkswagen AG, which is globally represented by 12 brands – Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Ducati, Lamborghini, Porsche, Scania, SEAT, ŠKODA, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (Volkswagen Nutzfahrzeuge), MAN and Volkswagen Passenger Cars.
