Ecology
Environmental protection has been a priority company goal for a long time and is part of our daily actions. Ecological aspects are an integral part of product development, the design of production processes and of company processes.
Regenerative energy is the key to solving many problems – on the basis of this conviction, environmental protection in the area of energy consumption has a long tradition at Schmalz. Due to our comprehensive use of regenerative energy sources – solar energy, wind turbines, wood chips, etc. – we are able to produce more energy than the company itself needs for operation.
Ecological Guided Tour
Public interest in our many environment-protection measures and their benefits for private persons, other companies, schools, clubs and other associations was the trigger for the installation of an ecological guided tour.
Environmental Protection Through Regenerative Energy Sources
Wind turbines
Schmalz has two wind turbines with an annual output of more than 2,500,000 kWh.
Heating with wood chips
A wood-chip heating system produces about 2.000.000 kWh of heat annually. The wood chips used as fuel are made from wood blown down by storms or wood which has naturally broken off from trees.
Photovoltaic system
Photovoltaic modules with an area of 644 m2, installed on the roof of one of the factory buildings, generate more than 85,000 kWh of electricity per year.
Solar systems
Three solar systems annually generate about 11,000 kWh of heat for the production of hot water.
Water turbine
The flow-through turbine of the hydroelectric plant underwent a general overhaul in 2008 and was integrated into a new turbine location. With a yearly output of 150.000 kW/h, Schmalz reduces its CO2 emission by 124 tons.
Environmental Protection Aspects in the Process Chain
Development and design
In the product planning phase, we already check the environmental compatibility of our new products with the aid of a check list and look for ecological solutions. This applies to both the product design, the selection of materials and the amount of materials needed. In addition to functionality, we wish to ensure that our products have a long lifetime, operate efficiently and can be recycled when their lifetime ends. With this in mind, we have, for example, developed vacuum generators with an automatic air-saving function and suction pads whose nipples can be removed for separate recycling.
Administration
Purchasing – we systematically prefer suppliers who have an intact environmental and quality management system and whose products and production processes comply with our requirements with respect to quality and the environment.
Paper consumption – thanks to our electronic archiving system, each employee can view any document directly on his or her monitor. This saves large amounts of paper per year and also reduces the space needed for storing such documents.
Paint shop and welding shop
In the paint shop and the welding shop, where energy consumption, emissions and waste are ecologically relevant, the protection of the employees and of the environment has high priority. In order to avoid the emissions from paints containing solvents, the paint shop has switched, as far as possible, to the use of powder-coating methods. Air extraction systems are installed close to all welding equipment.
Production and assembly
Systems – Schmalz has no systems which require official approval, which means that no serious environmental effects are to be expected in this area.
Consumption of resources/recyclable materials – in order to minimise the consumption of resources, strict waste separation is practiced at Schmalz, resulting in recycling quotas of up to 99 %. Recyclable waste is separated into more than 13 categories, thus making recycling easier and reducing the costs for disposal of these materials.
Hazardous materials – some hazardous materials are indispensable in the production process. We pay great attention to the correct handling and use of such materials. As far as possible we avoid using substances which can pollute water supplies or which are flammable or explosive. If avoidance is impossible, we restrict their use in order to avoid negative effects on the environment in the case of incorrect handling or accidents. The indispensable hazardous materials are also stored in specially designed containers.
Coolants and lubricants – the turning and milling of components not only produces metal chips but requires the use of coolants and lubricants. Here, it is important to ensure maximum protection against possible contamination. The coolants and lubricants are therefore continuously cleaned and recirculated within the machines in order to keep the consumption as low as possible. By means of additional monitoring measures, we have succeeded in achieving longer lifetimes for these substances, thus reducing the consumption even further. Metal chips contaminated with coolants and lubricants are collected in special containers with sieves above their bases. Before the chips are transferred to the recycling container, the coolants and lubricants are drained off and returned to the machines for further use.This means that it is no longer necessary to spin-dry the chips, a process which consumes primary energy. Instead, they can be directly processed by recycling companies.
Packing materials
In order to assist our customers in the disposal of packing materials, we use re-usable pallets wherever this is possible. We use only recyclable packing materials such as paper.
Logistics
Due to the location of the factory, Schmalz has to use carrier companies to transport goods. We also pay attention to the environmental friendly shipment and hold our partners liable. We selected a company certified in accordance with DIN ISO 14001 as our main carrier. In addition we sent all standard shipments within Germany with the GoGreen dispatch of the freight carrier DHL.
We count on environmental friendly shipment in order to reduce CO2 emmissions.
General environmental aspects
Land consumption – Schmalz currently produces its products on a total area of 10,350 m2. It is our declared aim to keep our land consumption by existing or planned buildings to an acceptable minimum or to compensate for further consumption. For this, we have already carried out measures such as the creation of an additional water retention pond and the planting of trees.We place particular emphasis on the preservation of existing biotopes and the creation of new ones. We provide, for example, nesting facilities for bats and birds of prey on our company premises. Efficient utilisation of the production floorspace is ensured be using new, high-performance machines which achieve a far higher output on only a slighter larger floor area.
Energy consumption – in the office buildings, the energy consumed in the form of electricity and healing oil is decisive. The company is very interested in optimising these ecologically relevant factors in order to improve its own environmental performance. A modern building automation system controls, for example, the brightness of the illumination according to the amount of daylight. Schmalz is committed to the subject of generating regenerative energy in order to combat the negative environmental aspects of energy consumption and C02
emissions. Our aim is to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels by up to 90 %. Great attention is paid to the energy efficiency of all new buildings. The new office building constructed in 2002 complies with the thermal insulation standard for low-energy houses.
