Download the 2011 CSR Report

2010 was a banner year at MCFA with advances in the creation of more fuel efficient and eco-friendly products for our customers. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emission standards were updated for internal combustion forklifts in 2010, and MCFA responded by putting in place more sophisticated technologies that include new materials and engine
designs to reduce emissions, and, in many instances, to exceed these new requirements.

In addition, key initiatives to lower MCFA’s environmental impact and eliminate waste have continued to progress through powder coat paint process improvements, zero waste manufacturing and office recycling programs.

Like most industrial manufacturers, MCFA continues to research and implement cleaner processes to minimize the environmental impact of forklift production, while continuing to maintain the quality of forklift trucks that come off the line. MCFA’s sustainability initiatives have grown exponentially since the company first achieved ISO 14001 certification in 2007, resulting in positive changes throughout the process.

Local Sourcing. In 2010, MCFA ramped up its quest to find more local sources to manufacture and weld some of its forklift components with the goal of shortening lead times and offering more flexibility. MCFA ended the year with sourcing 20% of components through localized suppliers, such as overhead guards, carriages, steer axles and seats. The effort reduced shipping costs and lead times as well as fuel consumption and emissions to transport the components to MCFA’s factory in Houston.

Less Waste. Also in 2010, MCFA dramatically increased the number of reusable plastic, polycarbonate bins to replace corrugated cardboard boxes for the shipment of industrial forklift parts. By all accounts, this returnable and collapsible packaging initiative has reduced waste by 96% and space utilization by 60%. It was, for all intents, a joint effort between
MCFA and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI ) in the shipment of parts from Japan to the United States and the return of the empty, collapsible bin to Japan for replenishment. The initiative has also included the replacement of wooden pallets with metal racks fabricated by MCFA on the plant’s laser cutting machine to accommodate larger and more difficult to ship parts like engine covers and forklift cabs.

Reduced Paint Emissions. MCFA’s proprietary powder coat paint system has continued to reduce campus-wide emissions by more than 50% since its introduction. Unlike conventional wet paint processes, the powder coat painting system virtually eliminates all Volatile Organic Compound (VOC ) emissions, which when mixed with nitrogen oxide (NO x), can produce environmentally harmful, ground-level ozone. The powder coat paint process also helps reduce employee exposure to heat and fumes, while lessening the amount of paint waste.

Going Paperless. MCFA employees are also impacting the environment. Inside the corporate offices, employees implemented a new recycling effort that reduced the amount of paper goods generated by more than 60 cubic yards per month. This effort also decreased the number of trash pickups each week from three to just one.

Reduced Energy Consumption. Information Technology made improvements to the company’s blade server and mainframe computer and reduced energy consumption at MCFA by 146,000 kW in 2010. This upgrade is equivalent to the impact of planting 110,000 trees or reducing creation of 186,000 pounds of carbon. Additionally, MCFA’s competitive
parts subsidiary company, Rapidparts Inc., in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in an effort to align with MCFA’s corporate social responsibility, completed an energy-efficient server virtualization project. Virtualization allows multiple operating systems to be installed on a single server, thereby reducing the amount of hardware required and the amount of carbon generated. Rapidparts Inc. continues to keep energy savings optimized by implementing new and emerging technologies.