NCEast Alliance celebrates sustainabile manufacturing practices

Bridgestone’s Wilson tire manufacturing facility has not sent waste to the landfill since 2013. Photo credit: Bridgestone

On March 26, NCEast Alliance hosted the “Sustainability in Manufacturing” conference in Wilson, N.C. The conference brought together representatives from three manufacturing companies with plants in eastern NC to discuss sustainability initiatives and share best practices.

Michael Darr, plant manager of Bridgestone’s Wilson tire manufacturing facility, was on hand to talk about how the plant managed to eliminate landfill waste and use energy more sustainably. From Bridgestone’s press release:

“During the panel discussion, Darr shared the sustainability journey of the Wilson passenger and light truck tire plant, including the 2014 award of the highest claim validation for landfill waste diversion from UL. The Wilson plant is the first facility of any kind to receive this prestigious designation. The plant also earned ISO 50001 certification for superior energy performance, an international standard specifying requirements for industrial Energy Management Systems. Additionally, the plant eliminated volatile organic compounds (VOCs), organic chemicals that have a high vapor pressure and are released in the air, by switching from solvent-based parts washers to solvent-free alternatives plant-wide.”

Senior manufacturing operators from Cummins Inc. and NACCO Materials Handling Group were also present on a panel to talk about the sustainable practices they have implemented in their North Carolina manufacturing plants.