Dunlop and the environment

Our goals

At Dunlop, we are committed to protecting and respecting the environment.

Leading vehicle manufacturers use our tyres as original equipment because they trust and respect our quality, development techniques and innovation. However, this alone is not enough. We must also meet the demands of the environment by adopting sustainable practices and using our resources more efficiently.

We practice the latest manufacturing and management techniques and work only to the highest standards as outlined in international standards.

In practice

Here are some of our activities:

Introduction of an Environmental Management System (EMS) as part of our integrated quality, environment, health and safety management system
Promotion of EMS to our customers, suppliers and contractors
Environmental performance targets to meet our legal, operational and business requirements
Regular audits and reviews on our environmental performance
Environmental awareness training for all directors and senior management
Appointment of environmental co-ordinators to ensure our EMS is implemented and maintained in line with ISO 14001
Continual re-alignment of our environmental policy and business objectives

Continued commitment

We have a series of procedures and initiatives to ensure continual improvement of our environmental performance.

Dunlop set environmental objectives every year as part of our business planning process.

Design

Whatever the tyre, our design engineers develop quality products that meet the demands of our customers - and the environment.

Here are some examples:

Extensive market research, research and development, computer modelling and rigorous testing
Continual improvement of our low-rolling resistance tyres (offering lower temperature generation and attrition without loss of grip) for longer lasting products and improved fuel economy
Development of new materials and compounds for lighter and more durable tyres

Manufacturing

While our production efficiency increases every year, we have also successfully reduced our energy consumption and waste.

Energy consumption

Today, we need an average of 40% less energy to make a tyre than in 1985.

Here are some examples of our savings:

Improved insulation and condensation recovery
Idle running systems added to machinery
75% reduction in N0x emissions
30% reduction in steam and electricity

Reducing waste

By addressing every aspect of production, our internal waste reduction programme has achieved considerable cost savings - and reduced our impact on the environment.

We are also:

Working throughout Europe to exceed the requirements of forthcoming environmental legislation on scrapping tyres
Always exploring alternative recycling methods
We recycle -
- Rubber
- Polythene
- Wood
- Metal
- Paper
- Plastics

Improving distribution

We always strive to become more efficient and environmentally responsible in our logistical operations.

Here are some of our improvements:

New warehouse with paperless, computer-driven system and high-fidelity relays
Demountable fleet with smaller aerodynamically sound vehicles
Widened delivery area
Once-only product handling
Where appropriate, we adopt intermodal from Europe

Tyre recycling

We are opposed to using landfills for tyre disposal and believe tyres can be used for their energy.

Tyres yield a calorific value about 10% higher than coal so, for example, their energy can be used to manufacture cement or generate electricity - if combusted in an environmentally acceptable way.

We are also a member of a Government and industry working group, exploring alternative tyre disposal and recycling methods.

Tyre re-treading

Unless exempted by standards legislation, the vast majority of our tyres are suitable for re-treading.

Also, all our truck and bus tyres can be re-grooved, which, depending on the application, allows us to extend a truck tyre's life to more than a million kilometres.

We manufacture re-tread tyres in the UK. Throughout the re-treading process, we recycle rubber raspings to produce granulate matter for sports and playground surfaces. The raspings can also be reprocessed to create rubber crumb, which we buy as a raw material.

Paper

Working with a specialist company, all our waste paper is recycled as raw material for tissue manufacture.

Polythene

We use polythene throughout the rubber manufacturing process as a protection film for the rubber compound and an identification aid for components.

Recycling polythene has lowered our expenses and helped protect the environment:

Much of our polythene is 'embossed', which we can easily remove from sticky compounds or thin components
When recycled, polythene produces damp-proof course strip, 'sleeping policemen', dustbins and bin bags

Water

We require large quantities of water for cooling, heating and steam for moulding.

To reduce our environmental impact and costs, we use closed re-circulating systems wherever possible.

Raw materials

Our materials department sources raw materials that improve product performance and minimise environmental impact.

In practice:

We convert raw materials into rubber compounds and their components with maximum safety
We handle and transport our materials in line with strict standards to minimise adverse effects on our employees and the environment
We have replaced materials known to contain nitrosamine or nitrosamine generators with safer alternatives, such as 'green' silica technology
We have replaced oils containing polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and substituted solvent-based products with aqueous alternatives
All these advancements have reduced our waste significantly. Also, when we can't recycle waste, we can now dispose of it safely.

Raw materials suppliers

We work closely with our suppliers to develop environmentally acceptable materials.

For example, we ask our suppliers to use materials that are easier to process and require lower working temperatures.

We also:

Use additives to reduce vulcanisation time during moulding
Capture and recycle process dusts and solvent fumes with extractors
Receive a high proportion of raw materials in bulk or multi-trip containers - which reduces packaging waste

Noise pollution

In the developed world, traffic noise is the most common form of acoustic pollution. Road surface textures and tyre patterns are the main causes.

Noise limits refer to the noise omitted by a vehicle, rather than by its component parts, but this is all set to change in 2006 when newly fitted (OE) tyres will be set their own limits.

Currently limits are set between 72 and 76db depending on tyre width for cars travelling at 80km/h. Limits for motorcycles are set at 82db for 50cc - 125cc and 86db for motorcycles that are 125cc and over.

In the last twenty years, vehicle noise has stabilised. This is partly due to new tyres that offer excellent grip in wet conditions.

For example the Dunlop SP Sport Maxx is already below future EU noise limits.

All results refer to a vehicle travelling at 80km/h
	Currently valid EU limits	NEW EU limits*	Dunlop SP Sport Maxx
Width in mm	Noise dB (A)	Noise dB (A)	Noise dB (A)
< 145	72	70	**
155-165	73	71	**
175-185	74	72	**
195-215	75	73	72.4
225-235	76	74	72.8
> 235	76	75	71.5

* From 2007
** N/A The Dunlop SP Sport Maxx is not available in these sizes.

Historically, quieter tyres have suffered a reduction in grip. However, using modern analytical methods, computer-aided engineering and modelling, our designers have created tyres that offer uncompromised - and improved - grip.

We have been instrumental in helping the European Union prepare a directive aimed at reducing noise pollution from tyres.

Dust

While we bind chemicals in a vulcanised rubber matrix, materials and reaction products become tyre dust through road surface attrition.

The effects of tyre dust are being investigated. For example, tests at the Institute Pasteur in Lille, France have shown the toxicity of worn-off rubber particles is less than one five hundredth of the level required to be classified toxic by the European Union.

The European Union and other legislative bodies keep us informed on research. We also work closely with the British and European association working groups (British Rubber Manufacturers Association and Bureau de Liaison des Industries du Caouthouc de L'U.E.) and endeavour to respond positively to proven environmental threats.

Here are some improvements we have made already:

We have eliminated all nitrosamine generating ingredients from our products
We do not use any of the chemicals detailed in the Montreal Protocol as ozone depleters
According to IP 346, our truck tyres contain no ingredients with polyaromatic hydrocarbon levels greater than 3%