22.11.2001
Vauxhall's 'eco-chariot' rides off with more green apples

Vauxhall recently collected two national awards for environmental best practice. The Luton plant was named National Gold Winner for its 'eco-chariot', a converted fire engine which responds immediately to any alarms or spillage, and Ellesmere Port was named national runner-up for best practice amongst motor manufacturers.

Vauxhall recently celebrated the win of two national awards for environmental best practice, beating 300 other companies in the process.

The company continued its three year winning streak at the Green Apple awards, organized by The Green Organization, when the Luton car plant collected the trophy for National Gold Winner. The judges praised the plant's 'eco-chariot', a converted fire engine which responds immediately to any alarms or spillage.

The judges went on to say: "It is probably under-used as Vauxhall's investment in prevention and containment is very effective. They [Vauxhall] have no history of polluting incidents and are continually well within all consent limits set by legislation."

At the same event, the company's Ellesmere Port facility was named National runner-up for best practice amongst motor manufacturers. The judges highlighted the fact that reducing energy use is now part of the culture at Ellesmere Port, with a continuing focus on low energy and high efficiency equipment. They were particularly impressed by the fuel savings - 100,000 cubic meters of water has been saved and electricity use has dropped by almost 14 million kWh.

Kevin Moxey, Vauxhall's Executive-in-Charge of Corporate and Environmental Planning, welcomed the wins, saying: "We are delighted to have been recognized, against stiff competition, as once again being the industry standard setters for environmental performance."

Earlier this year, the company secured ISO14001 environmental certification at its head office, to make it the first automotive manufacturer in the UK to have all its sites so accredited.