Industrial Cranes sustainability story image
Industrial Cranes sustainability story image
Article

We can help you to reduce your environmental impact

At Konecranes, we are committed to environmental responsibility and always strive to minimize the impact of our operations and products. By investing in Konecranes’ smart, connected, resource- and energy-efficient products, you can significantly reduce your own environmental impact.

We should all make decisions that help reduce our environmental impact. At Konecranes, we strive to minimize the overall environmental impact throughout all the seven stages of a crane's lifecycle.

Watch the video below to learn more about how we apply life cycle thinking in smart product design.

Design

Decisions made at the design stage critically determine a product's overall environmental impact. We use the Design for Environment concept in product development to ensure maintainability as well as energy and material efficiency. Product Lifecycle Assessment helps to analyze and reduce the environmental impact of our products. By using the Lifecycle Assessment approach, we can compare different design solutions of each life cycle stage. For example, with the Konecranes C-series chain hoist, we have reduced carbon dioxide emissions by using less materials, and technology that consumes less energy than our previous generation of chain hoists. 

Our Design for Environment concept and Product Lifecycle Assessment address emissions right from the start.

Raw materials

Raw material extraction and processing can lead to water shortage, loss of biodiversity, and global warming. We select repairable and recyclable materials and design our equipment to enable easy reuse and recycling. We have a process to monitor and control restricted substances in our products. The amount of essential materials, especially steel, is optimized, to further reduce the overall environmental impact. One example of material optimization is Konecranes S-series hoist which is 20 percent lighter than the previous hoist generation. Furthermore, 94 percent of the hoist materials are fully recyclable metals.

Optimized amounts of repairable and recyclable materials show a responsible use of resources.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing processes can affect the environment by using up raw materials, consuming energy, and creating waste. We have certified environmental management systems in place to continuously improve energy and material efficiency, mitigate environmental risks and minimize waste at our manufacturing plants. Konecranes has set ambitious Science-Based Targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its own operations and from its value chain that are in line with the goal to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. We are working hard to decarbonize our hoist and crane production. By the end of 2022, all our factories will be powered by 100 percent renewable electricity. 

Certified environmental management systems and ambitious Science-Based Targets prove our commitment.

Distribution

Transport uses most of the world's fossil fuel. This creates air pollution and is the main cause of global warming through carbon dioxide emissions. We make every effort to utilize reusable and recyclable materials in packaging. We optimize our transport methods and routes and minimize packaging to reduce the overall fuel consumption and volume of emissions between our factory and your site. The structural design of our new crane allows the main girder to be transported in two pieces with just one truck, thus reducing emissions.

Products in reusable and recyclable packaging are delivered by transport optimized to shorten routes and minimize emissions.

Product use

Electrically powered hoists and cranes can still create carbon emissions, depending on their electricity source. Our advanced technology provides high mechanical and electrical efficiency, which reduces overall energy consumption. Smart Features and process automation improve productivity, and further reduce energy consumption. A fully automated crane with Konecranes DynAReg regenerative braking can recapture up to 30 percent of the crane's braking energy, helping to decrease the overall energy consumption. 

Smart Features and process automation use advanced technology to minimize energy consumption.

Maintenance

If equipment is not properly maintained, breakdowns can be expected, and a lot of resources will be wasted. We offer industry-leading maintenance services to keep your equipment running safely and problem-free for a long time. Modernizations typically increase the safety, reliability, and performance of the whole crane, improve energy efficiency, and considerably extend the remaining lifetime of the product. 

Predictive maintenance and modernizations reduce servicing needs and extend product lifetime.

End of life

Waste that is not properly recycled is filling the world's oceans and landfills causing problems throughout the global ecosystem. When the crane reaches the end of its life span and it can't be repaired any more, we recommend recycling its materials, based on what's available in your local infrastructure. About 90 percent of our crane materials are recyclable. We can help you recycle your old crane's components where possible, and properly dispose of any restricted materials according to local regulations. Recycling where possible and responsible disposal of unrecyclable materials minimize waste.

Industrial Cranes sustainability story image
Industrial Cranes sustainability story image

Summary

Konecranes is committed to environmental responsibility. We help our customers to become more sustainable, supporting them with eco-efficient and low-carbon products and solutions, world-class engineering, and service. We strive to minimize the impact of our operations and products. By investing in Konecranes’ smart, connected, resource- and energy-efficient products, you can also significantly reduce your own environmental impact.