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Reducing Our Environmental Footprint
Improving Business Operations
Photo: Boeing Photo
At our newest factory in South Carolina, manufacturing technician Yeakia Johnson is part of the team building the fuel-efficient 787 Dreamliner in a clean new way. The site is using 100 percent renewable energy resources and sending zero solid waste to landfills.
Business operations at the Boeing South Carolina 787 Dreamliner facility reflect the environmental thinking our new airplane represents as the site will send zero solid waste to landfills. Newly constructed buildings will achieve a LEED Silver rating or higher, and the site will be powered entirely by renewable energy.
Renewable energy will be generated, in part, with thin-film solar laminate panels on the 10-acre (4- hectare) roof of the new 787 final assembly building. The solar installation will provide up to 2.6 megawatts of electrical power for the site, enough to power approximately 250 homes. When completed, it will be the largest solar energy-generating facility in the Southeast United States by production capacity, and the sixth largest in the country.
While the solar panels will provide 20 percent of the power needed for the South Carolina site, the remainder will be purchased from a renewable energy facility, where renewable waste streams are processed to produce energy while generating very low emissions.
In addition to the solar roof on the final assembly building, a second solar installation will help generate energy for the site's new welcome center, which will serve as the point of entry for all visitors to the site.
"Boeing continues to demonstrate remarkable corporate leadership in pursuing renewable and sustainable energy sources. The 787 facility in my home state of South Carolina recently committed to becoming a 100 percent renewable energy site, and the company is involved in sustainable biofuels partnerships worldwide. The fact that Boeing would lead the way is going to make it easier for other businesses to follow."
— U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham
Construction of the newest Boeing South Carolina facilities is being designed to a LEED Silver rating or higher. LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, provides a rating system based on multiple factors including energy and water efficiency of buildings and the use of sustainable sources during construction. Boeing established a LEED Silver rating standard for all new construction and major renovation projects at Boeing-owned buildings in the United States.
Boeing Illustration
An artist's rendering of Boeing South Carolina's new 787 Final Assembly building with thin-film solar laminate panels installed. When complete, this installation will be the largest in the Southeast and sixth largest in the United States by energy production capacity.
Other Boeing LEED-certified buildings include facilities in California, Texas and Washington state, and the new Boeing Tianjin Composites factory — a joint venture with the Aviation Industries Corporate of China. In addition, Boeing is currently pursuing LEED certification for our corporate headquarters in Chicago and buildings in Philadelphia, Portland, Ore., and Washington, D.C.
Boeing received the 2011 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as well as ENERGY STAR certifications for buildings in California, Texas, Washington state and our corporate headquarters in Chicago.
Reducing waste to landfill is a focus at several major Boeing sites. In addition to South Carolina, our helicopter manufacturing site in Philadelphia, our Commercial Airplanes parts fabrication facility in Salt Lake City, and our Strategic Missile and Defense Systems facility in Huntsville, Ala., have all stopped sending nonhazardous operational waste to landfills. Other locations around the company currently are pursuing this goal.
Eliminating waste sent to landfill requires improving the efficiency of operations, reducing the amount of packing materials used to ship parts and assemblies, increasing recycling, and sending some waste to energy-generating incineration facilities. Boeing defines "zero waste to landfill" to include, at a minimum, all solid waste generated by operations. It does not include waste generated during construction and remodeling, nor does it include hazardous waste, which is handled in accordance with applicable regulations.