NOVEMBER 2023 AFTERMARKET 29 www.aftermarketonline.net Whilst accommodating a wider range to cater to evolving eco requirements, it brings challenges to legacy businesses in terms of available space, logistics, and waste management. Customer demands are also evolving, with a growing awareness of the environmental impact of driving and the lubricants used affecting consumer decision making. However, a truly sustainable product is more than just the technical characteristics of specific lubricants. The entire supply chain, including packaging, waste, and recyclability, must be examined holistically to assess and mitigate the carbon footprint. Each step in the journey, from ordering a product to the disposal of waste oil, offers an opportunity to contribute to reducing emissions. When it comes to making more sustainable choices regarding what products to stock, there are a host of new developments on offer to aftermarket operators framed by the waste hierarchy of ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’. This includes everything from the recyclability and circulatory of the packaging, to the volume of product that can be delivered and stored to reduce transportation-related emissions, to ensuring product design reduces to as close to zero as possible the risk of spillage and waste. TotalEnergies, for instance, has recently introduced its QuartzBox, an eco-efficient packaging solution designed to meet the requirements of garage technicians and the motor industry. Housed in a 100% recycled cardboard box, the packaging design reduces the use of plastics by 86% compared to equivalent volume rigid containers. The design also enables efficient stacking of six boxes per shelf when full and folding flat when empty, optimizing space utilization. This reduces the mileage associated with the product as the design allows for 20% more volume to be packed per pallet, leading to fewer deliveries and reduced road traffic. In addition to packaging considerations, addressing the carbon footprint of lubricant production, distribution, storage, and disposal is essential in achieving incremental environmental improvements in the automotive industry. Tailored waste oil collection services can make a significant impact by collecting waste products and recycling them into new, high-performance lubricants, thus enhancing the circularity of operations. In the ongoing mission to combat climate change, distributors and motor factors have a crucial role to fulfil in enabling the transition towards a more sustainable motor industry. The worldwide focus on reducing carbon footprints necessitates that the automotive industry becomes adept at facilitating and embracing change, all while ensuring the smooth functioning of transportation systems that are vital for people and the economy. Fortunately, solutions exist. With a collective readiness to tackle the challenges ahead, the automotive sector can contribute significantly to its achieving sustainability goals.
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