Chem321:The Subaru Manufacturing Plant in Indiana

A Case Study of SIA maufacturing Facility, Lafayette, Indiana

As we look towards the future, we must be conscious of where we live, and what we do to our surroundings. As our view of our planet changes, and our population as a species continues to grow, we must look at our surroundings as a finite entity. No longer can we simply dispose of our wastes without thought into the environment. We must find new ways, and incorporate new technologies that will allow us to continue in economic stability, yet not harm our environment. Although the thought seems simple, many times its implementation can be difficult. It takes much thought, cooperation, and a completely new approach to manufacturing to make it all come together. One such example of a company that has embraced this new way of thinking is Subaru. They have committed themselves to finding ways to create automobiles, and while doing so, create no landfill wastes in the process. The tag line for Subaru is " a household creates more landfill waste than we do as a company" This is their story, and how they have managed to attain this environmental goal.

History

The Subaru Isuzu Automotive Inc. (SIA) was incorporated in March of 1987. In order to create a larger market share these two large Japanese automobile makers, Subaru and Isuzu, joined forces and created a plant in Lafayette, Indiana. The intent was to better serve the American market, and ultimately increase market share here in the United States. After a 1.2 Billion dollar investment, and two years of construction, the first Subaru Legacy rolled off the production line. Over the course of ten years, this plant rolled off a million cars, creating what SIA had hoped for, increased market and sales in the United States. As the nineteen nineties came to a close, the once great car maker and partner at SIA, Isuzu, began to lose market share. Ultimately this led to Subaru being left as the lone operator of the plant by 2003. The only change since that time is the addition of the Toyota Camry to the plant's production line, as Toyota became a large shareholder in Fuji Heavy Industries, the parent company of Subaru. During the production year of 2008 SIA rolled out 28,000 Tribecas, 78,000 Legacies and Outbacks, as well as 92,000 Camrys. (1) They now employ over 3,000 people and have the capacity to roll off 800 automobiles per day (5).

The plant itself has been quite successful in many regards. It has continually produced a quality product, and has been able to sustain many difficult times within the automobile industry. While maintaining production it has also transformed its manufacturing to a produce zero waste to landfills. That journey began in 1998, when the SIA became the first North American car plant certified in ISO 14001. Upon reaching that milestone, they set an ambitious goal. In 2002 they challenged the company to become a zero-landfill facility in 5 years, by the year 2007 (5). In order to become a zero landfill facility the entire complex could not produce any wastes that would end up in landfills. They met that goal three years ahead of schedule, in March of 2004. (5) Since reaching that goal in 2004, SIA is at a 99.9% recycling rate for the wastes they do produce, with the remaining .1% being hazardous wastes that must be incinerated by a licensed facility. (3)

How it was done

Subaru implemented a system that has been perfected over the course of the last ten years, but still relies on its most basic principles. First and foremost, all departments must buy into the system and become team players. In order to revise any process in such a large facility takes the cooperation of many people, in many areas. One revision the SIA did make was reusing shipping containers for engine components. In order to implement this change many departments needed to be on board. Engineering needed to sign off on the integrity of the container, that it can withstand multiple uses. Purchasing needed to be in contact with the supplier to verify that this is acceptable. SIA currently has 81 % of its suppliers as ISO 14001 certified companies, indicating that they too are dedicated to improving their overall impact on the environment. (2) Shipping needed to coordinate deliveries of new material, with that of the returning containers, and accounting needed to keep track of it all, to ensure profit margins are kept, and that the process change did not become too costly. This is an example for one change, in one process, in one area of the facility. It is very simple to see that massive cooperation within a facility is essential to ensure the success of becoming a zero waste facility.

Making change, from the ground floor up

Subaru relies on a very simple hierarchy of ideas to analyze and provide changes within its plant walls. It relies on the three R's: Reduce, Re-use, and then Recycle. This has become the basis of worker training, and workers are encouraged to offer suggestions that can attain their goals. In the first year of this program, 268 ideas that were implemented came from the ground floor associates. (4) This continues to be a source of new ideas, and since that time numerous other processes have been changed based on those suggestions. SIA starts this process with "Dumpster Diving"(4) in every area of the plant. Workers were asked to tip over their dumpsters, analyze all wastes, and find ways to reduce, reuse or recycle everything in those bins. Priority is given to first reduce materials, secondly to re-use materials, and lastly recycle if applicable. It is the intent of this paper to give a brief glimpse into how Subaru has met each of these three goals, to reduce, reuse, then recycle.

Reduce

First and foremost on SIA's list is to reduce any raw materials that are used. By simply reducing materials in the first place, it eliminates waste before it enters the facility. There are many ways that this was accomplished, some very simple, and some much more complex. SIA began dimming lights during designated break times during the day, saving electrical costs. They began to address leaking air lines within the facility, to allow compressors to run less to maintain air pressure. Paint sealant that was used in one process was applied with a squeegee instead of a brush. This allowed the workers to apply less, and scrape the excess from the squeegee back into the bucket to be re-used. SIA was able to reduce solvents in the painting process by 79%.(2) During engine assembly, cylinders were originally lubricated with a squirt bottle containing oil before parts are installed. This process was revised to a system where compressed air shot the oil onto the surface. This saved over 670,000 gallons of oil per year (4). Steel used in production of components is purchased from suppliers in large rolls. SIA worked with these suppliers to buy these rolls in exact widths and lengths needed for production. SIA also revised the processes for creating these components. Previously components were pressed with an unneeded lip around each surface that was later removed during assembly. These edges were trimmed back to the smallest increments needed for production. This process saved 102 lbs. of steel waste per car, reduced 425 coils of raw steel material per year, and saved enough energy to power 2,233 homes annually (4). The welding process was revised to produce fewer sparks and use less electricity. This also produced less waste slag metal in the process. Due to this revision usage of copper welding tips dropped by 75% (3)

Re-use

Materials that are a necessity to the production process, and that could not be eliminated, were looked at in terms of re-use. Solvents were one main area of focus. These chemicals used in the painting process become contaminated after being used. Previous to this plan, SIA would have to ship this waste out of the facility. Now an elaborate distilling process removes the solvent from the contaminate, where it can be re-used in the next painting process. This gained SIA a 21% increase in materials that could be reused in the painting process (2) The separated impurities are shipped to a company that uses them to make ladles in the steel industry. (3) Packaging was revised. SIA reviewed every process of incoming components, and worked with suppliers to create a system of re-usable storage bins and containers. Engine components from Japan are now shipped in polystyrene containers that can be re-used 5 times before being recycled (1) . Brass lug nuts that temporarily hold the rims on the vehicle during shipment are now sent back to suppliers to be reused. Pallets are used until they can no longer be repaired, at which time they are ground into mulch for the campus or given to nearby nurseries. The savings for these changes are staggering. In terms of re-using materials alone SIA saved:

• 1,930 tons of packaging material
• 812 tons of pallets
• 22 tons of oils and solvents in 2007 (1 )

By reducing and reusing materials together SIA was able to reduce wastes created per vehicle by 45 %. In 2005 459 lbs. of wastes were produced per car. In 2007 that number dropped to 217 lbs.(1)

Recycle

The last tier on the SIA hierarchy is to Recycle. SIA believes in the philosophy that the best solution is to produce a system that initially does not produce wastes. This can be accomplished by the first two components, Reducing and Reusing. After these two options are exhausted, SIA then focuses on recycling the waste material. The slag I referred to earlier from the welding process is gathered and sent to a company in Spain to be recycled. Suppliers have switched from non-recyclable blue shrink wrapping on pallets of material, to clear, recyclable plastic. Scrap steel is recycled. One of the most ingenious systems is what is referred to as the "bulb eater". This device "eats up" used fluorescent bulbs and separates the components into sections to be recycled. It is estimated that this facility alone produces 4 tons of used bulbs annually (1) Cafeteria and food wastes are shipped to a nearby plant in Indianapolis, IN, where they are incinerated and used to produce energy for the city. By using the above measures the SIA plant recycles the following amounts of materials annually;

• 13,142 tons of steel
• 1,448 tons of paper and cardboard,
• 194 tons of plastic and packaging
• 20 tons of bottles and cans
• 10 tons of solvents and cleaners
• 4 tons of fluorescent bulbs we spoke of earlier (1).

Looking towards the future

As SIA implements new systems, it becomes more and more difficult to continue to make gains reducing, reusing, and recycling. SIA continues to find ways to save. Currently they are working on two impressive technologies to even further reduce their impact on the environment. The cafeteria waste is now being reviewed to keep it on site. Currently it is shipped to an incineration plant. SIA is looking at creating a compost track to regenerate food wastes into composted soil. The idea is to create a large "loop" where composting worms can create nutrient soil (3). Another process that is being reviewed is a system that is currently in place that captures spray paint from the air with falling water. SIA is currently looking at adding a small hydroelectric generator that can harness the energy of the falling water to create electricity from the 10,000 gallons of falling water per minute (3). SIA has posted a new goal, to reduce 18% of their electrical consumption by the year 2012. (2)

Being recognized for their achievements

SIA has become a leader in the quest for a sustainable model of industry that does not harm the environment. In 1998 they were the first North American Automobile Facility to become ISO14001 certified and since then, the list of achievements and accolades continues to grow. Twice the EPA has awarded SIA their Gold Achievement Awards. SIA has also received numerous awards from the state of Indiana. SIA has opened their doors not only to other industries, but also to its competitors. They have done this in an attempt to share their knowledge on being environmentally aware, and how these processes can be implemented in many other facilities. It is this type of mindset that will allow many others in the future to incorporate these principles into other industries.

In conclusion

SIA has focused their production efforts not only on meeting their sales goals, but also on meeting their responsibilities to the environment. They have adopted a culture of working together to create quality products, without adding any wastes to landfills. SIA set out to achieve a goal of no wastes within a five year window, and were able to do that in three. This system, and this company should be a model for many others that this can be done in industrial facilities, and it can be done while keeping profits and sales in order to maintain a successful company.

References

1. Gonnat, Hugues. "Going Green, Inside Subaru's Plant "Producing Vehicles In a Zero Waste Facility"" MSN Canada. www.msn.com. Web. 27 June 2011.
2. Kennedy, Brad. "The Zero Effect: How to Green Your Facility." Industry Week. www.industryweek.com, 1 July 2008. Web. 27 June2011.
3. Robinson, Alan G., and Dean M. Schroeder. "Greener and Cheaper." The Wall Street Journal. www.WSJ.com, 23 Mar. 2009. Web. 27 June 2011.
4. Sustainability Story. www.subaru.com. Subaru. Web. 27 June 2011.
5. Woodyard, Chris. "It's Waste Not, Want Not at Super Green Subaru Plant." USA Today. www.usatoday.com, 19 Feb. 2008. Web. 27 June 2011.