Magna's

Sustainability

Click the objects on the world map to see some awesome facts about Magna's sustainability mission.

WORLD MAP

The Magna facility in Langres, France, uses sheep to mow the lawn, reducing CO2 emissions.

Magna’s Polycon Industries division in Guelph, Ontario, implemented over 3,000 “green” suggestions from employees in the past five years, including an on-site garden that provides vegetables to a local food bank.

A Magna stamping plant in Shanghai, China, developed an innovative approach to providing the cooling water required to run a new diecasting machine, resulting in significant energy savings.

Magna’s Decostar division in Carrollton, Georgia, issues its own sustainability report, another way employees take responsibility for their own environmental systems.

Employees in 10 Magna divisions in Austria and Germany, are tending beehives as part of an effort to protect and increase the bee population in Europe.

The Magna Craiova division in Romania, launched a “Lend a hand to the environment, plant good deeds!” campaign, which included the planting of 10,000 oak and ash trees by volunteers.

Magna divisions in Sanand, India, use recycled wastewater to grow guava, pomegranates and eggplant in on-site gardens.

Magna Sonora Forming Technologies in Hermosillo, Mexico, hosts an annual summer camp for kids, where they learn how to compost, plant trees and why it’s important to take care of the planet.

Polycon Industries: An Energy-Conscious Mindset

What’s the secret to generating all of those great energy- saving ideas from Polycon Industries employees?

“It’s all about motivation,” said Heidi Mullins, Polycon’s environmental coordinator. “We ask our 1,300 employees to submit five continuous improvement ideas per year. All of our team leaders work with their employees to implement their suggestions. As a result, we’re becoming more efficient, cost effective, and we’re reducing our impact on the environment.”

The plant, which makes exterior components, has an annual “Continuous Improvement Celebration Day” featuring team videos and their ideas. The day is to acknowledge and appreciate the employees and their ideas - including reusing packing materials, reducing paint overspray on parts, recycling cigarette butts, installing more than 10,000 LEDs through the facility, and tracking electricity usage by department.

Polycon Industries has applied for and received CAD$1.6 million in incentives from local gas and electric utilities in the past five years for various energy-savings projects.

Mullins draws inspiration for even more ideas from camping trips in Ontario with her husband and dogs, where they explore local trails and enjoy nature.

“Those trips influence my thought patterns about the impacts this industry has on our environment,” she said. “It’s all about reducing our environmental impact and being as energy conscious as possible.”

Tobias Burghart (Head of Electrical Department), Florian Albig (PLC Specialist), Petrit Kelmendi (Project Management), Stephan Greckl (Project Management), Markus Hirschvogel (Head of Production), Dennis Graupner (Support for Energy Management)

Cosma Markt Schwaben: Smart Energy-Saving Ideas

Markus Hirschvogel’s passion for nature stems from a yearly bicycle trip he makes across the Alps from Germany to Italy, riding hundreds of miles past forests and glaciers.

“You notice climate change if you know the mountains,” said Hirschvogel, the head of production at the Cosma Markt Schwaben division in Germany. “You notice the temperature swings and the glaciers melting. This is where thinking about sustainability comes in. I want to give something back to nature.”

As Magna’s energy manager for Europe from 2013-2019, Hirschvogel led and supported more than 100 energy teams in Europe. Today, he is helping to implement energy-saving projects at Cosma Markt Schwaben.  The goal: To be one of the most efficient casting facilities in Europe.

Since 2016, the plant has completed 40 projects, including the installation of more efficient furnaces, shutting down the plant’s exhaust system during non-production times and using new mold-cooling equipment to save energy. Data collection is a critical part of monitoring energy usage here: 220 meters measure energy consumption for most of the lines. It’s easy to spot concerns and make changes.

“The people who work on the line give us ideas,” Hirschvogel said. “They see exactly what’s going on. The ideas are smart and easy to implement. But we can always do better.”

Heidi Mullins and husband Shannon with dog Bella at Bay of Fundy, Canada