For the second time in four years, Mercury Marine has won a Wisconsin Business Friend of the Environment award. The marine propulsion system and propeller manufacturer also won the award in 2014. The Business Friend of the Environment Awards features Wisconsin companies that focus on pollution prevention and environmental stewardship.
Earlier this year, Mercury launched 19 V-6 and V-8 outboards designed in part to reduce environmental impact.
“We are honored to win the Business Friend of the Environment Award for the second time,” said John Buelow, Mercury Marine vice president of global operations, in a statement. “The validation-testing of both the V-6 and V-8 platforms have set a new benchmark in the marine industry relative to the reduced amount of raw materials required for their manufacture, as well as their fuel economy, emissions and noise abatement.”
Mercury’s continued focus on sustainability has also earned the company a Green Masters designation for seven consecutive years and in June, Mercury’s Active Trim was honored as the Sustainable Product of the Year award.
Four pillars, Energy, Environment, Product and People are the focus of Mercury’s sustainability efforts. Following are some highlights from Mercury’s sustainability efforts in 2017: The installation of approximately 2,000 rooftop solar panels at the company’s facility in Petit-Rechain, Belgium, reduced annual electricity costs by more than 30 percent; Mercury implemented systems to redirect and reuse water and to more efficiently cool and heat water for industrial applications; The company made improvements to HVAC systems, reducing energy consumption by more than 11 million BTUs annually; Since 2015, Mercury has recycled close to 750 tons of mixed paper, corrugated containers, shrinkwrap and drinking bottles. The company also diverted 950 tons of wood pallets from landfills and reconditioned for reuse; Finally, through 2015 and 2016, Mercury’s manufacturing balers prepared more than 1,200 tons of cardboard for recycling, resulting in an energy savings of approximately 470,000 kilowatt-hours.
