Situation

The Engines plant lies close to the city of Valladolid, in a largely industrial area, inside the industrial complex of Renault Valladolid. It is next to a main road linking Madrid with the north of Portugal. The plant has an area of 25.8 ha, of which 14.5 ha are covered.

First ISO 14001 certification earned in 1999.

The site renewed its certification in 2002 and 2005.

Valladolid Engines is also ISO 9001 and HPR certified.  

Download :
- site's environmental policy 2007 (Spanish)
- environmental statement 2002 (Spanish/English)

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Water consumption

The fall in water consumption can be attributed to specific measures taken by the plant, with particular focus on increased personnel awareness. The scheduled drainage operations, which have brought significant savings, are one result of these initiatives.

With automation, real-time monitoring of soluble-oil cutting fluids and detergent baths as well as the reuse of water produced by the distillation process in the evaporators enhance water-saving actions.

In 2007, the upgrade of the plant’s sanitary water supply was completed. The old pipes were replaced with a new stainless steel above ground system. The upgrade reduces the risk of leaks to a minimum.

Under the zero emissions approach, water is recovered from the treatment of wastewater, which halves the total volume of water consumed by the plant’s filtration and washing facilities.

 

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Water-borne effluents

2007 was the starting point of the zero emissions approach. This ambitious project covers various aspects of emissions:

• The physical/chemical treatment plant, with inefficient obsolete technology, was shut down.

• A third evaporator was installed, taking the plant’s treatment capacity to around 3,200 l/h.

• 100% of the diluted solution obtained after treatment with evaporators is recovered, so liquid effluent is no longer sent to the wastewater treatment facility at Valladolid Body Assembly. The diluted solution is used in the plant’s industrial processes.

• Reusable waste is obtained from the concentrate produced by the distillation process in the evaporators.
  
  

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SO2 and greenhouse gas emissions

In 2000, the plant replaced fuel-oil by natural gas. This helped to bring about a reduction in atmospheric emissions from the plant, cutting SO2 emissions to non-significant levels.

On the other hand, the integration of radiant panels and solar panels cut CO2 emissions from the thermal power plant.

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Volatile organic compounds emissions from paint process

In 2007, a cross-functional project to reduce emissions to water was launched. The project aims to reduce consumption of the most frequently used products at the plant (straight-oil and soluble-oil cutting fluids, hydraulic fluid and detergent baths).

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Waste

Since the closure of the physical/chemical treatment plant, the volume of HIW generated by effluent treatment has been considerably reduced. The evaporators produce a concentrated residue, which is easy to recover via a concentration treatment before being sent to the authorized manager.

Recycling of packaging has been expanded, by treating all types of plastics generated by the plant as recoverable waste.

 

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Energy

Energy saving is one of the most important environmental aspects of the engine plant. In 2005 the plant was awarded the best practice prize by Renault España.

Monitoring electricity consumption on each manufacturing line and scheduling work during non-productive periods are two features of the environmental management system. The site also has a working group that analyses the situation and seeks to reduce energy consumption, both during manufacturing and non-productive periods.

Solar heating panels have been installed on 80% of the plant’s technical rooms. The panels heat domestic water for the Engines 2 and Engines 3 buildings and their annexes. 

Radiant heating panels in the Engines 3 buildings and auxiliary workshops are gradually replacing the old combustion chambers with more efficient technology. In the areas concerned, this generates an annual saving of 34% on natural gas.

 

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Highlights

 

• Improved distribution reduces waste

The installation of self-serve systems for the distribution of straight-oil cutting fluids, soluble-oil cutting fluids and lubricants, alongside the centralized system of automatic feed of soluble-oil cutting fluids and detergents, covers 98% of the volume of products used in the plant. As a result, we have improved the availability of the service and reduced residues in oil drums, in which products were previously supplied, because we now use refillable packaging.

• Soil protection

In 2007, effluent stores were coated with an extra sealant, ensuring watertightness and preventing pollutants from seeping into the soil.

• More efficient technology

Valladolid Engines has a plan to gradually replace the turbines in the compressors that supply compressed air to the plant with more efficient compressors.   Currently, two of the plant’s five two-stage compressors have already been fitted with turbines that consumes 8% less than the standard technology.