"Don't bottle it" - one million 'Lube Cubes' and counting
Despite the growing public awareness about the problems caused by single-use plastics, currently only 41.2% of plastic is recycled across Europe. Within the lubricants industry, most single-use plastic packaging is extremely difficult to recycle due to contamination, which sadly means that most ends up in landfill or is incinerated.
Most single-use plastics only begin to degrade after around 700 years, and in addition to this problem, the plastic production process is one of the leading causes of carbon emissions - ultimately compounding its impact on our environment.
As reported in the final quarter of 2020, FUCHS SILKOLENE has now switched ALL its engine oils away from 4 litre and 20 litre plastic bottles in favour of 100% recyclable Lube Cubes.
"Leading the way with market-leading packaging technology, the FUCHS SILKOLENE superior motorcycle products are now only available in an eco-friendly carboard pack, reducing carbon footprint without any extra effort or quality compromise," said FUCHS' John Mosley.
"Lube Cube packaging is 100% recyclable, offering obvious benefits to the environment and tackling plastic waste head-on.
"Delivered flat-packed to the manufacturing site and in far higher quantities per pallet load than its plastic counterparts, the logistical benefits of fewer deliveries further extends an improved carbon footprint through the Lube Cube manufacturing process."
15,600 empty 20 litre Lube Cubes can be transported to FUCHS's production lines in two trucks, whereas it takes six trucks to deliver the same number of plastic containers - a reduction of 66%.
Two truck loads of 4 litre Lube Cubes are the equivalent of eight trucks supplying 20 litre plastic containers - a reduction of 75%.
Joost van Genderen, Head of Motorcycle at FUCHS Lubricants, said: "These statistics demonstrate the significant added value from switching to Lube Cubes from traditional plastic containers. Fewer trucks on the roads means less CO2, less congestion and reduced operational costs.
"Being easy to use and fully recyclable is the most obvious saving for our customers as they can now help make a positive choice for the environment when selecting our products - so it's good news for everyone - and with the 360 degree full colour print decorated box, the new packs stand out on the shelves, allowing for easy selection from our colour coded performance level front labels."
"The Lube Cube is a tremendous success story, and we plan to continue to build upon it, with the ultimate aim of removing all single-use plastic bottles from our range completely by 2022.
"So far, the introduction of the Lube Cube has saved more than 800 metric tonnes (800,000 kg) of plastic since its launch in 2012. Recording our millionth Lube Cube sale at the end of 2020 proves that our customers are responding well to this eco-friendly innovation."
www.silkolene.com
