June 27, 2008
Owens Corning Partners with Environmental Defense Fund and PHH Arval to Reduce Emissions of Vehicle Fleet
TOLEDO, OH – Owens Corning, a supplier of building materials systems and glass fiber reinforcements, has begun to systematically measure and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its vehicle fleet. Owens Corning joined the PHH GreenFleet program, developed by PHH Arval and Environmental Defense Fund, in an effort to reduce fuel consumption and operating costs, improve efficiency, and reduce emissions from vehicle fleets used by its North American sales force.
"We're committed to greening our operations around the world in every area of our business to achieve specific environmental footprint reductions and reduce operating costs," said Frank O'Brien-Bernini, chief sustainability officer for Owens Corning. "Reducing the emissions of our vehicle fleet allows us to achieve both of these goals simultaneously."
Through PHH GreenFleet, Owens Corning established a greenhouse gas baseline and incorporated more efficient vehicles into the fleet. Early steps included eliminating the company's least-efficient vehicles, "right sizing" trucks and SUVs, and incorporating more front-wheel drive and four-cylinder engine vehicles. Owens Corning expects to increase fleet average miles-per-gallon (mpg) by 18 percent, reduce greenhouse emissions by 15 percent, and reduce projected operating costs by 8 percent.
The PHH GreenFleet program is designed to help companies cost-effectively measure, reduce, and offset their greenhouse gas emissions, and PHH clients utilizing the program have achieved, on average, a 14-percent reduction. Participation includes: in-depth analysis and recommendations to improve efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions; quarterly measurement and reporting of emissions; and resources to offset remaining emissions.