(SEOUL) December 22, 2011 – Kia Motors introduced Korea’s first electric vehicle today (Thursday), with the launch of the new Kia Ray EV – a zero-emissions city car with lively performance and a range of up to 139 km (86 miles) on a single charge.
For supply exclusively to the domestic Korean market, the Kia Ray EV is a close relative of Kia’s 1.0-liter gasoline powered Ray CUV, which went on sale in Korea last month. It shares that model’s major dimensions and, in a global first for an EV manufacturer, can share a production line with conventional combustion-engine cars.
The front-wheel drive Ray EV is powered by a 50kW electric motor and a high-capacity 16.4 kWh lithium ion polymer battery pack that is engineered for a 10-year life cycle and skillfully packaged under the rear seat and cabin floor.
Although the Ray EV weighs 187 kg more than the gasoline model, the electric motor’s generous torque – 167 Nm (an increase of 77%) – ensures responsive performance. The EV’s acceleration is brisker than the gasoline models (0-to-100 kph in 15.9 seconds), while top speed is 130 kph (81 mph). Recharging times are six hours using a 220V household supply and just 25 minutes in fast-charge mode. Continue reading →
US Sunlight wins another award for their innovated line of energy efficient products: the Solar Attic Fans and Solar Controller™ are declared by the editors of BUILDERnews magazine as the “Best Sustainable Product of 2011″ in their annual publication release of the year’s best products for builders, contractors, architects and material suppliers.
Incline Village, NV (PRWEB) December 30, 2011
BUILDERnews, a fifteen year old monthly publication has a distribution of over 80,000 readers, targeting building industry professionals. Active attic ventilation is acknowledged for its tremendous benefits to the health of the home. Solar attic ventilation provides numerous benefits, venting the attic space while the sun is out with free energy. However, traditional solar ventilation is limited to the hours of available sunlight and is unable to continue operation into the evening hours or on cloudy days when many attics are still suffering from residual heat and/or excessive moisture. Fans powered strictly by house power are able to provide 24 hour ventilation, but only at a hefty price tag, frequently upwards of $30 per month. Continue reading →
Shares 2011 Progress Led by Menu & Food Sourcing Advancements
OAK BROOK, IL, Dec 21, 2011 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) — McDonald’s Corporation today released its 2011 Sustainability Scorecard and reinforced its commitment to mainstreaming sustainability for customers through the company’s actions and collaboration with suppliers, experts and the food industry as a whole.
The 2011 Scorecard highlights the company’s progress in five priority areas, including significant advancements related to menu evolution and sustainable sourcing. For example:
– By the end of March 2012, fruit will automatically be included in
every Happy Meal served in U.S. and Latin America restaurants.
Additional changes, including a new smaller size of French Fries only
available in Happy Meals, will result in reductions in calories and
fat for the most popular Happy Meals; Continue reading →
EcoSeed.org – Google Inc. is ending the year with another clean energy investment together with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. by investing in four solar farms to provide enough electricity for about 13,000 homes in California.
Google’s $94 million is the internet giant’s first in grid-connected photovoltaic solar power investment. This latest investment brings Google’s total clean power investments to more than $915 million, which has been primarily in wind power, solar roofs, and a solar thermal power plant.
The deal is also the first clean energy investment in the Unites States byKKR. The company invested in the solar farms through SunTap Energy RE LLC, its newly formed solar investment unit.
The exact amount provided by KKR was not disclosed but it was drawn from a $95-million pool managed by SunTap, according to the statement. Continue reading →
(3BL Media / theCSRfeed) PLANO, TX – December 13, 2011 – PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay North America announces ten new electric trucks will be rolling out in Orlando. These electric delivery trucks will ultimately be part of the largest planned fleet of commercial all-electric trucks in North America.
Electric trucks reduce fuel consumption, noise pollution and CO2 emissions, compared to traditional delivery trucks. In total, Frito-Lay will deploy 176 electric trucks this year in the U.S. and Canada, making Frito-Lay the largest commercial fleet of all-electric trucks in North America.
“The electric vehicle program builds on a long-standing commitment by Frito-Lay North America and its parent company PepsiCo to environmental sustainability,” said Mike O’Connell, senior director of fleet for Frito-Lay North America. “With the seventh largest privately owned fleet in the U.S., we have set a goal of becoming the most fuel efficient fleet in the country, and these vehicles give us an opportunity to use the latest advances in transportation technology as a significant way to reduce our environmental impact.” Continue reading →
MISSISSAUGA, Ontario, July 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Building on its journey to become a leader in innovation and environmental sustainability, PepsiCo Beverages Canada today announced the introduction of the 7UP EcoGreen™ bottle, Canada’s – and North America’s – first soft drink bottle made from 100 percent recycled PET plastic.
The development of the 7UP EcoGreen bottle is a significant achievement for PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) and a breakthrough for the Canadian beverage sector because the company has identified a way to couple existing technology with the best sources of recycled PET plastic and best-in-class processing techniques to produce a 100 percent recycled PET, food-grade bottle that meets all regulatory requirements and is of the highest quality. Creating a bottle made from 100 percent recycled plastic for soft drinks is more challenging than creating a bottle for non-carbonated beverages because of the stress on materials from carbonation pressure.
By introducing the 7UP EcoGreen bottle in Canada, PepsiCo Beverages Canada will reduce the amount of virgin plastic used by approximately six million pounds over the course of one year. Studies published by the Association for Post-Consumer Plastic Recyclers in 2010, estimate this reduced use of virgin plastic will lead to a reduction of more than 30 percent in greenhouse gas emissions and more than 55 percent in energy use, based on current 7UP production levels. Continue reading →
The early market for electric vehicles is proving that demand for the vehicles exists across the globe. The combination of consumer purchase incentives, rising fossil fuel costs, and exciting new vehicle models is fueling a strong early adopter market. Production of electrified vehicles is gearing up all over the world, and automakers are planning to launch an increasing variety of new models over the next few years. In recent weeks new electric models have been officially launched, after months of advance publicity, by both Chevrolet (Spark EV) and Honda (Fit EV). Automakers around the world will introduce dozens of new models over the next few years, fueling consumer interest and increasing sales of electric vehicles as a percentage of total auto sales.
According to a recent report from Pike Research, hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) combined will represent 3.1% of worldwide auto sales by 2017. Thanks to higher penetration rates in the United States, HEVs and PEVs will account for 5.1% of total U.S. vehicle sales in 2017. Continue reading →
“CurrentState is a necessity for every company that is serious about going green”Ramon Ginah, CFO – Francesca Furzi
“I would highly recommend CurrentState for any company exploring sustainability”Tim Gilbert, Plant Manager – FasCast Inc
(Press Release) Tulsa, OK – January 13, 2012 – Caelus has released the CurrentState™ sustainability audit for business.
The world of sustainability can be a confusing place. It is easy to get lost in the sea of acronym-rich reporting initiatives, certifications, eco-labels and regulations. However, the most important thing for businesses is missing – a comprehensive tool that tells tells companies exactly what they need to do. This is why we developed CurrentState™.
The CurrentState™ Sustainability Audit is a ‘best practices gap analysis’ and a ‘business practices maturity analysis’ combined into one tool – nothing more, nothing less. Simple elegant, and in our opinion a game-changer.
Does this sound simple? That’s because it is. Why hasn’t this been done before? Because nobody has created a framework that clearly and comprehensively defined sustainability – until now.
Sustainability Defined
CurrentState™ is based on our Three Tiers of Sustainability™ framework. Our framework clearly defines sustainability and in our opinion has been the ‘missing link’ in sustainability consulting. Our framework organizes sustainability into three primary activity groups: Green IT, Facilities and Business. These three groups are further divided into 25 (more specific) sub-groups. If an activity is related to sustainability in business, it will have a place in the framework.
By having a comprehensive framework, we are able to answer another very important question all businesses have – Are we doing everything that we can in order to go green?
Why CurrentState™?
In addition to being a revolutionary approach, CurrentState™ offers business other distinct advantages.
CurrentState™ is delivered directly to your desktop. No need for time-consuming, money-wasting meetings. Time is money, especially when your paying by the hour. CurrentState™ is not charged by the hour and delivers the same questions a consultant would, but at your convenience and with no chance of missing anything
This method of collecting information is efficient. What we do with the information once we receive it is also efficient. We have automated many of the non-analytical steps of the consulting process, so as soon as qualified sustainability consultant begins on your case, they will be able to begin analysis immediately. This allows us to deliver a Findings Report in a matter of days, not weeks or months.
Another advantage is that CurrentState is focussed. CurrentState™ does not count carbon or advise you on the ROI of specific projects. It is focused on determining exactly the activities your organization needs to conduct or consider. The result – your team will not be wasting valuable time hunting for data for activities that may not be needed.
Finally, your Findings Report will spell out in specific terms exactly what tasks need to be done (Quick Wins) and what things you need to consider (Recommendations) in order to improve your sustainability performance. Ratings and analysis for each sub-category is also generated. For most organizations, these tasks can be used as the basis of a sustainability implementation plan. Add some resourcing, budget and do a little ROI analysis and you will have a plan that leaves no leaf unturned and would make any CSO proud.
The Findings Report
The Findings Report is ‘boardroom ready’ and is delivered in both PowerPoint and pdf formats. Each report will contain over 100 specific quick wins (shorter-term, easily achievable tasks) and recommendations (longer-term activities). “In essence, if you add resource requirements and budget to the report, you will have a nearly complete Sustainability Program. This is exactly what our clients are doing and their reaction has been overwhelmingly positive.”
The Findings Report can be used as:
a blueprint to develop a sustainability program;
a method to demonstrate to management, a board or the public an organization’s sustainability achievements;
a way to quickly identify gaps in your current sustainability efforts;
a way to document and track sustainability performance from period to period;
and a way to determine current compliance with major international standards and certifications.
(SEOUL) December 22, 2011 – Kia Motors introduced Korea’s first electric vehicle today (Thursday), with the launch of the new Kia Ray EV – a zero-emissions city car with lively performance and a range of up to 139 km (86 miles) on a single charge.
