|
Oklahoma-based Sustainable
Solutions, Inc. (SSI) is taking a leadership role in accepting
the challenge to find environmentally friendly and practical uses
for regenerated post-industrial waste streams, and it is being
recognized in a big way. The first group of unique products resulting
from SSI’s proprietary technology is debuting now on the
new Ford Reflex and Mazda Kabura model cars that were on display
during the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in
January.
The Kabura, which boasts a new level of intelligent environmental integration,
features never-before-achieved regenerated leather—the latest of SSI’s
innovative materials—comprised of post-industrial leather scraps from various
industries. The Mazda model also features cargo flooring that blends SSI regenerated
materials with Nike Grind, the post-industrial rubber waste from the production
of Nike footwear. And now, the sustainable technology from SSI that facilitated
the process of combining the regenerated materials with Nike Grind is being considered
for implementation on an ongoing basis across the Mazda and Ford brands in the
near future.
K. Joy Nunn, president and COO of SSI, praised Mazda for its innovative practices. “Mazda
has aggressively embraced true sustainability in the Kabura vehicle,” Nunn
said. “It’s more than just environmentally friendly products; it’s
smart business. This decision will positively affect their people, profits and
the planet.”
The Ford Reflex also boasts regenerated Nike Grind, making a sustainability statement
consistent with Bill Ford’s focus on being environmentally proactive. Nike
Grind is present in the floor tiles of the Reflex, offering added value because
of its noise- and vibration-dampening qualities. Nunn said its use of regenerated
materials is an ideal fit for Ford’s business strategy, “Great Product,
Strong Business, Better World.”
“In our relationship with Ford, we’re taking millions of pounds of
manufacturing byproducts and regenerating them into valuable raw materials for
use in high-quality, sustainable components for automotives,” Nunn said. “It’s
a win-win for everybody.”
Previously considered useless, manufacturing waste gains great value when it
is regenerated into a resource; the new resource stream then becomes a raw material
with exceptional value as a high-quality component for distinctive, new products.
Other industries are taking note of SSI’s environmentally friendly philosophy.
The United Sustainability Authority consortium, comprised of industry leaders
from numerous, unrelated markets, offers its member companies the opportunity
to share resources and collaborate with each other in a non-competitive environment.
And each of the companies in the consortium has engaged SSI to regenerate their
waste into a raw material stream, develop innovative new products and manufacture
them.
“This is so exciting, encountering open, like-minded people in new industries,” said
Jane Savage, Nike design manager for footwear. “We are reenergized to explore
our waste-to-product options with (SSI),” she said. |
