The Carbon Trust was easy to work with, knowledgeable and not overly bureaucratic. It was also commercially astute, and understood which issues really needed to be pushed and which didn’t.
Simon Appleby, Group Environment Advisor, JCB
The business case
Keen to reduce costs and carbon emissions – and responding to other drivers, such as the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) – the company made energy management a strategic priority in 2007 and started working with the Carbon Trust to develop its own carbon management plan.
The approach
An initial scoping study at the company’s Cheadle site identified 18 energy saving measures, which are now being rolled out. The installation of half-hourly metering has allowed JCB to start tracking energy consumption in real time. Lighting is now only used when needed, while temperature controls have been adjusted to avoid overheating. Elsewhere, air compressors are now monitored much more closely – pre-empting and preventing leaks before they occur. The company has also focused on raising staff awareness, and has integrated energy saving measures into the company’s standard shutdown procedures.
JCB is an international construction and agricultural equipment manufacturer, employing 7,000 people worldwide and producing over 300 different types of vehicle – from tractors to dump trucks. The company has a long-standing commitment to minimising its waste and environmental impact, and all its UK sites are ISO 14001 accredited.
Savings at a glance
- Total project cost: £300,000
- Projected annual cost savings: £1,500,000
- Projected annual CO2 savings: 7,800 tonnes
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