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The Brazilian Automotive Industry and Sustainability
Abstract
The automotive industry in Brazil is highly diversified in the production of vehicles (cars, trucks, buses, and light commercial vehicles). Since the 1970s, Brazil has experienced changes in the vehicle energy matrix, with the appearance of ethanol fuel as an alternative to oil. The use of ethanol produced from sugar cane, followed by biodiesel and modest advances in the use of electrical batteries in cars, has put the country on the path to energy sustainability. Currently, the technological innovations of the automotive industry have been concerned with developing electric and hybrid vehicles, as is the case with hybrid vehicles that are powered by hydrogen fuel cells or batteries (lead or lithium). The Brazilian automotive industry has thus contributed to the search for sustainability. It has a long way to go in that direction, however, because the use of diesel engines in trucks and buses accounts for the largest portion of air pollution in Brazilian cities. Brazilian legislation plays an important role in the quest for sustainability. More stringent legislation for reducing the emission of gaseous pollutants in all types of vehicles, and improvements in the enforcement of vehicle regulation, represent a huge leap forward in this regard. The efforts of the automotive industry in Brazil, along with technological developments, can contribute to the reduction of emissions of polluting gases, and the introduction of public transportation via trains, subways, and monorails that use electricity can do likewise. All of these are important contributions to the reduction of air pollution in Brazilian cities, and to the sustainability that we all so badly need.
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Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to focus on investigating and benchmarking green operations initiatives in the automotive industry documented in the environmental reports of selected companies. The investigation roadmaps the main environmental initiatives taken by the world's three major car manufacturers and benchmarks them against each other. The categorisation of green operations initiatives that is provided in the paper can also help companies in other sectors to evaluate their green practices.
Design/methodology/approach
The first part of the paper is based on existing literature on the topic of green and sustainable operations and the “unsustainable” context of automotive production. The second part relates to the roadmap and benchmarking of green operations initiatives based on an analysis of secondary data from the automotive industry.
Findings
The findings show that the world's three major car manufacturers are pursuing various environmental initiatives involving the following green operations practices: green buildings, eco‐design, green supply chains, green manufacturing, reverse logistics and innovation.
Research limitations/implications
The limitations of this paper start from its selection of the companies, which was made using production volume and country of origin as the principal criteria. There is ample evidence that other, smaller, companies are pursuing more sophisticated and original environmental initiatives. Also, there might be a gap between what companies say they do in their environmental reports and what they actually do.
Practical implications
This paper helps practitioners in the automotive industry to benchmark themselves against the major volume manufacturers in three different continents. Practitioners from other industries will also find it valuable to discover how the automotive industry is pursuing environmental initiatives beyond manufacturing, apart from the green operations practices covering broadly all the activities of operations function.
Originality/value
The originality of the paper is in its up‐to‐date analysis of environmental reports of automotive companies. The paper offers value for researchers and practitioners due to its contribution to the green operations literature. For instance, the inclusion of green buildings as part of green operations practices has so far been neglected by most researchers and authors in the field of green and sustainable operations.
In the automotive industry the fuel-cell vehicle (FCV) is increasingly seen as the sustainable alternative to internal combustion engine (ICE)-based vehicles. The growing popularity of FC technology in the automotive industry provides an interesting case. Where one would expect the mature automotive industry to dismiss FC technology in order not to jeopardise its ICE technology, several billions of dollars have been spent on the development of FCVs by automotive firms. And, although FCVs are not yet available on the market, the auto industry continues to be optimistic about their prospects. Therefore, we are potentially on the forefront of a major technological change. Given the need for change in order to achieve sustainability, FC technology provides an interesting case to study why the industry has come to adopt this technology, and how FC technology is in the process of becoming institutionalised. Using institutional theory, this paper endeavours to unravel the forces and mechanisms that have shaped the popularity of fuel-cell technology in the automotive industry.
This paper examines the impact of integrated environmental product innovations on company competitiveness. In a regional case study about automotive, rail and commercial vehicle firms in Southern Germany it is found that integrated environmental product innovation is driven by factors such as regulatory pressure, the search for competitive advantages and technological lead as well as customer pressure. Regulatory pressure includes sector policies, such as emission standards, and wider non-sector energy conservation issues, at both national and international levels. For instance, EU directives on future use of renewable energy as well as national goals for reaching the Kyoto protocol play an important role in driving innovation. The study finds that integrated environmental product innovations driven by regulatory pressure produce similar competitiveness impacts as innovations undertaken voluntarily by companies. Such results yield supporting evidence for the so-called ‘Porter hypothesis’, which assumes that environmental legislation stimulates innovation and leads to ‘win–win’ situations – the simultaneous reduction of pollution and increase in productivity. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
High oil prices and poor air quality in the urban areas are important factors that motivate efforts to cut consumption of petroleum products. Four public policy initiatives for the Brazilian transport sector are analysed: the adoption of flexfuel technology; the National Biodiesel Programme; the National Vehicle Efficiency Programme; and the Rio de Janeiro State Light Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Programme. Economic impacts (petrol and diesel avoided) are shown. Significant co-benefits are shown in terms of reduced CO2 emissions that are often not considered or accounted for by Brazilian policy makers. Lessons from these initiatives for domestic and international policy are presented.
The Chinese economy is growing rapidly, but accompanyingsuch growth are issues of environmental protection and social inequity
which must be addressed. With the Automobile Industry Development Policy and the Motor Vehicle Product Recovery Technology
Policy, an automobile products recoverability target has been established and will be incorporated into an automobile products
authentication management system in China. By 2010, for all end-of-life automobile products, reuse and recovery shall be increased
to a minimum of 85% by average weight per vehicle, and the use of lead, mercury, cadmium, and hexavalent chromium is prohibited.
This paper will address the sustainable recycling of Chinese automobile products within the period of 2006–2010.
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