Toyota wins energy efficiency award

Arden Wessels receives the Energy Company of the Year award

Through the awards, the SAEE recognises outstanding accomplishments of individuals and companies in the energy industry specifically the commitment to the profession; desire to further the association's mission, and participation in civic and community affairs.

"This is a very prestigious award and we are excited about winning it for the second consecutive year. At Toyota we strive for number one in all we do and this proves that our efforts towards energy efficiency are moving in the right direction. This is a critical part of our business and a company-wide initiative," says Riaan Olivier, general manager, SHE department at Toyota.

New department

Energy efficiency has always been a big concern for Toyota and in April 2010 a dedicated Environmental Engineering Department was formed to handle amongst others all the energy efficiency projects around the manufacturing plant located in Durban. The ever increasing energy crisis and cost gave rise to this department. The main objective of this department was to reduce energy consumption which translated into a reduction of costs and an improvement in operational efficiencies.

The Environmental Engineering Department has completed 108 projects since its inception with the main focus around energy efficiency. The projects are very intricate and involve feasibility testing, measurement and verification. The team use the expertise of the relevant area of the business to assist them in making the best decision possible.

"Energy is a collective effort and for this reason, we mobilise the whole company to assist us with our projects. We are very motivated to ensure all our projects yield optimum results with no effects on quality, safety and production. We continue to track all projects way after completion," adds Olivier.