IMPROVING OUR FLEET

Learning From Our Carbon Footprint

Improving our efficiency and environmental footprint from within our service fleet is a core objective for ThyssenKrupp Elevator. Our 2008 and 2009 greenhouse gas emissions inventory revealed that our branch offices – rather than our manufacturing facilities — comprise the largest majority of our carbon footprint.

The reason: Our large service vehicle fleet. Thus, ThyssenKrupp Elevator is rethinking our transportation systems, investigating and developing more efficient route planning, and diversifying our fleet with alternative fuel vehicles.

Rethinking Our Transportation Systems

In 2008, ThyssenKrupp Elevator launched a centralized distribution network—lowering our GHG emissions specific to the distribution operations by approximately 20%. The network allowed us to increase the efficiency of our products and parts distribution center and reduce the number of vehicles on the road. We have also reduced our service vehicle fuel consumption over the past two years.

Note: Vehicle fuel consumption is for service vehicles only, and does not include any shipping to or from our factories. Does not include distribution center fuel.

Deploying More Efficient Route Planning

Rather than sending shipments to project sites, we now ship them to regional centers. This allows us to consolidate our loads and reduce our trips. To improve service efficiency through optimized route planning for our service technicians, ThyssenKrupp Elevator installed global positioning systems (GPS) technology into all service vehicles.

Using Alternative Fuel Vehicles

ThyssenKrupp Elevator is currently investing a significant amount of time and research into diversification of our fleet to use more alternative fuel vehicles. We are working with automobile manufacturers, industry experts and our peer companies to determine the best approach on a region-by-region basis. We found that hybrid vehicles currently in the marketplace do not provide enough benefit over our existing fleet during highway driving to justify a significant conversion at this time. Additionally, electric-powered vehicles have yet to mature and develop to meet the needs of ThyssenKrupp Elevator. However, we are closely watching developments and incentives within electric vehicles. We are also currently piloting a program with liquid propane-fueled fleets in Phoenix, Arizona and there is potential opportunity to expand the use of propane-fueled fleets into other markets.

In 2009, we partnered with Ford Motor Company to begin using its Ford Transit Connect vehicles, which produce 37% better fuel economy than our current service vehicles. We now have 200 Transit Connects on the road, which we estimate will save 90,000 gallons of fuel per year. We are also currently piloting a program with liquid propane-fueled fleets in Phoenix, Arizona, and there is potential to expand the use of propane-fueled fleets into other markets.