Recycle cars - Ford

Ford's Core Recovery Program diverts various car parts ( not in india) from dealers back to the suppliers who make car components

The  initiative covers the collection, refurbishing and reprocessing of parts from vehicles that Ford’s dealers across the United State have collected over time from car owners.

As is the case with its competitors, Ford has recycled and remanufactured various auto parts for decades. Metals including steel, in fact, are one reason why cars have a relatively high recycling rate at the end of their life cycles.

Ford’s managers saw the need to have a more aggressive and sophisticated recycling program. Moving beyond salvaging steel from its automobiles, Ford’s Core Recovery Program seeks to recycle or refurbish everything from tiny sensors to the engines from its large pickup trucks.

In addition, since car parts became more complicated and expensive in recent years, the different collection methods Ford had used reached the point where they became obsolete.

A few years ago, a damaged bumper or headlight would have automatically been ticketed for the dumpster and therefore the local landfill. But in addition to damaged parts such as fuel injectors and windshield wiper motors, those same bumpers and headlights are now gathered and either refurbished or instead dismantled and then recycled. Two years after they were added to Ford’s list, over 62,000 bumpers have been salvaged while 26,000 headlights were recycled.

Those parts are just a small part of Ford’s recycling initiative: the company estimates it has diverted 120 million pounds from landfills in the 9-plus years since the company launched what Mark Trombetta, manager of Ford’s Core Recovery Center network, calls a “one stop shopping process” to make recycling more seamless for everyone within the company’s operations.

The removal and recycling of headlights is just one example of how Ford’s car parts have changed. A generation ago, headlights were relatively simple: but now glass, plastic and the fasteners needed to allow those lamps to shine are joined by more expensive resins and new wiring systems. 

Furthermore, headlight systems are now often two feet wide and are an integral part of Ford’s vehicles and, hence, are more difficult to remove and recycle.Ford continually harvests old bumpers as part of its newly evolved recycling program. The company collects the bumpers, which are five to six feet long, and sends them to a vendor where they are broken down into pellets. With each bumper weighing about 20 pounds, Ford can reduce the amount of virgin materials the company requires for new parts. In addition to bumpers, Ford also recycles underbody shields, battery trays and carpets.Ford’s recycling program partnership with its dealers works like the bottle return systems of yesterday. Dealers pay a core charge on each new part they purchase from Ford to replace damaged ones. When a dealer returns the original damaged part to Ford, that same dealer then receives the core charge back as a refund. Meanwhile, a system of bar codes and scanners keeps tracks of the various Ford parts as they move across the U.S. Ford partners with several distributors across the country that act as clearinghouses for all of Ford’s damaged parts, large and small.For Ford, not only does the company reduce waste and improve its environmental credentials, but the improvement in recycling efforts has proven to be a money generator. The program has grown so quickly in recent years that Ford has had to hire more workers and work them more hours in order to not fall behind. Recycling, once seen as an annoyance and cost center by automakers, is now emerging as part and parcel of car manufacturers’ strategy as raw materials become more expensive.Why don't our car manufacturers come with such ideas,,,,,,

Country which imports Garbage !!!

Sweden runs out of garbage, forced to import from Norway
Sweden, a recycling-happy land where a quarter of a million homes are powered by the incineration of waste, is facing a unique dilemma: The nation has run out of much-needed fuel.
Sweden, the squeaky clean Scandinavian nation of more than 9.5 million has run out of garbage. The landfills have been tapped dry; the rubbish reserves depleted. And although this may seem like a positive — even enviable — predicament for a country to be facing, Sweden has been forced to import trash from neighboring countries, namely Norway. Yep, Sweden is so trash-strapped that officials are shipping it in — 80,000 tons of refuse annually, to be exact — from elsewhere.
You see, Swedes are big on recycling. So big in fact that only 4 percent of all waste generated in the country is landfilled.
Good for them! However, the population's remarkably pertinacious recycling habits are also a bit of a problem given that the country relies on waste to heat and to provide electricity to hundreds of thousands of homes through a longstanding waste-to-energy incineration program. So with citizens simply not generating enough burnable waste to power the incinerators, the country has been forced to look elsewhere for fuel. Says Catarina Ostlund, a senior advisor for the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency: “We have more capacity than the production of waste in Sweden and that is usable for incineration.”

Public Radio International has the whole story (hat tip to Ariel Schwartz at Co.Exist), a story that may seem implausible in a country like garbage-bloated America where overflowing landfills are anything but scarce.

As mentioned, the solution — a short-term one, according to Ostlund — has been to import (well, kind of import) waste from Norway. It’s kind of a great deal for the Swedes: Norway pays Sweden to take its excess waste, Sweden burns it for heat and electricity, and the ashes remaining from the incineration process, filled with highly polluting dioxins, are returned back to Norway and landfilled.

Ostlund suggests that Norway might not be the perfect partner for a trash import-export scheme, however. “I hope that we instead will get the waste from Italy or from Romania or Bulgaria or the Baltic countries because they landfill a lot in these countries.

SAVE FUEL

How to save fuel !

Fuel Saving starts from a good fuel station:

Key Points to consider while selecting a fuel station:

Select fuel stations which are frequently visited by people. Risk of adulteration or contamination can be reduced.

Select fuel station which is paved - floor (concrete or tarred or tiled.). Fuel storage tanks at fuel stations are under the ground. Old and poor maintenance may lead to water seepage leading to contamination. (Water or any type of contamination reduced the engine life and consumes lot of fuel)

Fill fuel where the filling machines or dispensers are covered.  (Fuel station which is roofed)

Fill normal fuel no need to fill SPEED or additive fuels. It doesn't help much!!

 Avoid any distraction at fuel station by the people at the filling stations. You may be tricked and cheated with the amount of fuel filled.

Never use any fuel additives, which promises to enhances fuel mileage. Its our driving habits that can enhance fuel mileage.

Confirm the quantity of fuel by yourself at the fuel station. Get out of the car and confirm “0” and wait till you see the desired fuel you had requested to be filled.

How to drive to get maximum kilometres per litre of fuel:

1) Get inside the car , wear seat belt, adjust mirror, make yourself comfortable and then start the car. While moving out with family or friends , let everyone get it and when everyone is ready to leave , close the door and then start the car. ( Start your engine just before you leave )

2) Slowly rev the engine, do not push the acc pedal hard, smooth drive will always ensure good fuel mileage and increases the life of your engine.

3) Avoid hard braking, look up the road , check speed breakers, turns etc , frequent and abrupt braking not only leads to accident or poor brake pad life , it also reduces the fuel mileage.

4) Avoid resting your leg on the clutch , this will lead to poor mileage and also reduces clutch life.

5) Plan your trip well ahead and use GPS for finding the route to your destination. Searching for your destination burns more fuel than estimated.

6) If you have to pass thru a heavy traffic route, plan your timing or check the possibility of alternate route with less traffic.

7) Maintain your car properly, choked air filters and old engine oil may badly affect the fuel consumption.

8) For short trip avoid driving, best is walking. In short trips the engine is not warmed up, so the efficiency will always be poor.

9) If the car is parked under sun and when you get in, before you switch AC ON , open all the window glass for few minutes and then close and then switch ON the AC, this will help in cooling the car faster.

10) If you do not need fog lamp, audio or any other electrical load, please switch off, as this electrical load reduces the fuel efficiency.

11) Remove unnecessary weight from the car, a 50 Kg weight can increase the fuel consumption by 2%.

12) Do not fit local accessories like roof carrier/rails, bull guard, etc which hampers the aerodynamic of your car. Car makers develop accessories with design and aerodynamic sense.

13) In manual AC , keep the blower in full speed initially and bring down to less speed, also control the chillness less, this will reduce the load on the engine ensuring pleasant drive.

14) You can save close to 15% of your fuel consumption if you switch off engine whenever you stop your car in signals or traffic. ( any stops more than a minute –switch of the engine)

15) Frequently you apply brake, then you burn more fuel. Drive at a constant speed to avoid frequent braking.

16) Encourage Car pooling. This will help in reducing traffic on roads.

17) Drive at constant speed of 50 to 60 kms /hr speed. More than 80kms/hr speed you burn more fuel.

18) Use electric or hybrid cars.

19) Where ever possible, use public transport.

20) Maintain recommended tyre pressure. This will not only save fuel but also increases the tyre life. 2-PSI loss in tyre pressure may increase the fuel consumption by 1%.

21) Thicker or wider tyre may look good and also enhances the grip, but thicker tyres means more rolling resistance, means  burning more fuel.

22) Engines are more efficient around 1500 rpm to 2500rpm, so quickly move to the higher gear. At higher gear the engine efficiency is high so more fuel efficient.

25) If automatic Transmission , then switch to over drive option of Economy option ( if available) Do not rev up the engine , softly pedal the accelerate for better fuel mileage

26) AC can use about 10 per cent extra fuel when operating. However, at speeds of over 80 km/h, use of air conditioning is better for fuel economy than an open window

27) Share your fuel saving ideas with your society and friends.

14 Easy Ways to Save LPG gas

1.Let all your ingredients be ready before you light your stove. Do not light the Stove and search for oil or do not start chopping onions. You will end up over heating the vessel or burning off the stuff. Little planning would help to save gas.

2. Have a timer or be in the kitchen while cooking . Overcooking not only waste gas it also waste food( over cooking or burning food) . Next time do not run towards the kitchen to avoid milk over flowing. Avoid being on phone or watching TV while cooking !!

3. For cooking use a wider pan , see to it that the bottom of the pan is wider than the flame. Smaller utensils will make the flame go waste , leading to wastage of gas.

4.While cooking soft vegetables like cut leafy vegetables or cabbage, once the vegetables are 3/4th cooked you can just close the vessel with lid and switch off the gas. The heat inside will be suffecient enough to complete the cooking .

5.For Frozen food, before cooking bring it to room temperature . This will help is reducing the cooking time . which means you save gas.

6.Have a control on the amount of water used in cooking the vegetables, more water we use, more the time to boil. more the time more the gas we use.

7.When you use vessels immediatly after washing , wipe the vessels completly before you put them on the stove. Making the water to heat and evaporate using gas is sheer waste of energy .

8.Use themos flask to keep hot water which is heated once in a day. This hot water can be used through out the day.( for making hot beverages)

9.Clean the stove ports periodically , choked burners will hamper uniform heating of the cooking vessel.

10. Add a Tag on the cylinder or make a small calender in your kitchen, to monitor the gas cylinder replacement cycle. This will help in understanding the usage. Monitring your consumption is always better.

11. Avoid cooking with vessels open, a lid will help in reducing the gas almost half.

12.Low flame is recommended for all type of cooking. Full flame will accelerate cooking but also equally waste as you will end up burning or over cooking. At low flame , energy used is less and you get the same amount of heat to cook.

13.Clean the stove ports periodically , choked burners will hamper uniform heating of the cooking vessel.

14. Add a Tag on the cylinder or make a small calender in your kitchen, to monitor the gas cylinder replacement cycle. This will help in understanding the usage. Monitring your consumption is always better.

15.Avoid cooking with vessels open, a lid will help in reducing the gas almost half.

16.Low flame is recommended for all type of cooking. Full flame will accelerate cooking but also equally waste as you will end up burning or over cooking. At low flame , energy used is less and you get the same amount of heat to cook.

17.Usage of pressure cooker for cooking reduces time and energy. ( Use multiple tray to cook rice and veg together)

18.Cook as much you need. Refridgerating and heating the food again and again, uses lot of gas . Repeated heating also reducing the nutritional value of the food( and Taste)