Renault and waste

For Renault, the main priorities are to:

• reduce the volume and toxicity of waste;
  
• control treatment processes.             
  

Reduce the volume and toxicity of waste

During the production phase:

• Renault is seeking to reduce metal offcuts from body panels by optimizing the cutting process;
  
• reduce packaging waste;
  
• improve the application of paint to limit paint sludge;
  
• phase out the use of high-risk substances in industrial processes.             
  

Control treatment processes

The most recent Renault models are designed to be 95% recyclable. This means that 95% of the weight of the materials used to make Renault vehicles will be re-used. At the same time, the company has set an even more ambitious objective: to promote economically viable plastic technologies. Renault is committed to using 50 kg of recycled plastics per vehicle by 2015.

This will be a long process, but Renault is already starting to put it into practice on existing range vehicles. The dashboard of Modus, for example, is made from recycled plastic. The same plastics could be used in a few years to produce the Renault vehicles of the future.

Renault is working with the different players in each country to put in place appropriate waste recycling and recovery processes.

Production phase

To cut waste quantities at source, Renault has integrated targets in the design of logistics resources and is seeking to make industrial processes more efficient. 

• To cut quantities of hazardous waste produced by the paint shop, Renault has set up working groups to encourage the re-use of products in processes or with suppliers.

• Renault is improving sorting at source to increase the recovery of packaging waste.

•  In all countries, the preferred solutions are burning, or incineration with energy recovery (particularly with the cement industry in other countries). These solutions take into account the proximity of facilities to the site.

• Renault is boosting waste recovery by recycling metals from the machining and stamping activities (70% of the waste generated by industrial processes) and by improving sorting.  
  
  

Vehicle-use phase

Renault cannot act alone in this area, since the waste produced in this phase is linked to the commercial activities of vehicle maintenance and repair. 

In Europe, Renault is gradually rolling out a complete environmental management system across its network, with a panel of service providers for waste collection and treatment.

End-of-life

Renault takes action at two stages:

• at the vehicle design stage, to encourage: fluid extraction, the disassembly of some components, the use of materials chosen for their recyclability, the inclusion of recycled plastics and the application of eco-design processes (taking into account environmental protection issues right from product design);
• further downline, with the recycling industry in each country, to develop current and future recycling processes.
  

Read more : Design to recycle