Boeing Winnipeg, Canada Aims for Zero-Waste Manufacturing

Boeing Winnipeg, Canada, part of Boeing Fabrication, recently hosted a Lean+ event aimed at creating a zero-waste-to-landfill manufacturing cell. Once implemented later this year in the 747-8 area, it will be the first manufacturing area of its kind in Boeing.

The workshop explored ways to reduce energy and increase recycling in areas such as packaging, metals and solid waste. The team created a plan to divert 98 percent of the waste created away from landfills and to reduce energy consumption in the cell by 76 percent. The ultimate goal is to send no waste to landfills.

"The goals for energy and waste reduction that were established during this workshop are a great accomplishment by the team. This strongly supports our focus on the environment and our commitment to the ISO 14001 environmental standard," said Willy Geary, general manager of Boeing Winnipeg.

All of Boeing's major manufacturing facilities, including Winnipeg, are certified to the ISO 14001 environmental standard. The team's initiative supports Boeing's aggressive targets to increase recycling rates and energy efficiency 25 percent by 2012.