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18,000 solar panels cover the final assembly building at our South Carolina facility. Spanning 10 acres (4 hectares), it is one of the largest thin-film rooftop solar installations in the southeastern United States.
‘Zero’ waste is just a start
South Carolina aims to reduce, reuse and recycle even less than “zero” waste.
Read more »
As part of our commitment to reduce our environmental footprint, Boeing is working to improve the environmental performance of our factories and office locations.
Through conservation projects implemented over the last eight years, Boeing has saved nearly 114 million kilowatt-hours of energy — enough to power 9,940 average homes in the United States.
Our facility in Long Beach, Calif., was awarded the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry by reducing its energy intensity by 10 percent within one year. The Long Beach site is the first in the nation to receive this recognition three times. In total, 10 buildings have been ENERGY STAR-certified including sites in California, Illinois, Missouri, Texas and Washington state. As a result, Boeing was named an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for the second consecutive year.
South Carolina
One of the largest thin-film rooftop solar installations in the southeastern United States, as measured by production capacity, can be found atop Boeing’s newest final assembly building at the North Charleston facility. And, at 10 acres (4 hectares), it’s one of the largest in the nation.
This solar system, generating 2.6 megawatts at peak production from 18,000 solar panels or enough electricity to power approximately 250 residential homes, doubled the current solar generation in the state of South Carolina when it went online in October 2011. The solar system provides up to 20 percent of the power needed for this 100 percent renewable energy site. The remainder of the site’s energy requirements will be met with renewable energy from the local utility biomass generation facilities, coupled with renewable energy certificates.
LEED
All new construction and major renovation projects are 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 the energy and water efficiency of a building, improved indoor environmental quality and the use of sustainable sources during construction.
Boeing has LEED-certified buildings located in California, South Carolina, Texas and Washington state. Additionally, certifications are under way at several other Boeing sites, including our new joint venture composite manufacturing building in Tianjin, China.
Zero Waste to Landfill
Four Boeing manufacturing sites — our 787 manufacturing facility in South Carolina, our helicopter manufacturing facility in Philadelphia, our commercial fabrication site in Salt Lake City and our defense systems site in Huntsville, Ala. — currently send no solid waste to landfills. 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.
With a zero-waste-to-landfill goal, all sites look for continuous waste-reduction opportunities, such as recycling efforts and eliminating unnecessary materials used in offices and on the shop floor.
ISO 14001
Certification to the internationally recognized ISO 14001 environmental management standard has strengthened our companywide focus on continuous improvement and enabled a common way of managing environmental processes across the company.
Sites in the following locations are certified to the ISO 14001 standard, and Boeing China, the PDX facility used to paint commercial airplanes in Portland, Ore., South Carolina, and Williamtown, Australia, are expected to earn certification in 2012:
U.S. Locations:
Alabama: Huntsville
Arizona: Mesa
California: Anaheim, Cypress, El Segundo, Huntington Beach, Long Beach, Palmdale, Rancho Cucamonga, Seal Beach, Sylmar, San Diego, Taft and Torrance
Florida: Kennedy Space Center
Georgia: Macon
Illinois: St. Clair
Kansas: Wichita
Missouri: St. Charles and St. Louis
Oregon: Portland
Pennsylvania: Philadelphia
Texas: El Paso, Houston and San Antonio
Utah: Salt Lake City
Washington: Auburn, Bellevue, Everett, Frederickson, Kent, Renton, Seattle and Tukwila
International Locations:
Australia: Amberley, Bankstown, Brisbane, and Fishermans Bend
Canada: Winnipeg
United Kingdom: Bristol, Knaresborough and Welwyn Garden City
