GRI Steps Up Green Manufacturing Efforts

Sept. 17, 2021

Global Rubber Industries Pvt. Ltd. (GRI) has made a number of enhancements at its plants in Sri Lanka to optimize its "green manufacturing" processes, a major priority for the company, which stires in the United States.

"GRI is in constant pursuit of seeking sustainable alternatives to be used in our products and manufacturing processes," says GRI CEO Dr. Mahesha Ranasoma.

"We invest in research and development and are continuously looking at ways to reduce our impact on the environment. Our goal is to build tires sustainably and to move forward in making a positive impact on our planet."

The tiremaker recently installed capacitator banks "for power factor correction," which has reduced energy consumption, according to GRI officials.

And it has installed solar panels on the top of its plants.

GRI operates a 24/7 water treatment plant. Water processed there "is then used as cooling water for machines and other purposes. As our tire production is a dry process, liquid effluents are also not discharged into the environment."

Rubber waste that's generated "is given to the local reclaim rubber industry. Once this rubber waste is processed, GRI repurchases the reclaimed rubber and rubber crumbs to be reused."

According to GRI Executive Director Ananda Caldera, the rubber waste "essentially journeys a full circle and returns to the factory."

GRI also reports that it has earned ISO 50001 certification for its energy management system, plus ISO 140001 certification for its environmental management system.

"We receive credit for our energy management system because we use bio and solar energy," notes Caldera. "Furthermore, GRI uses the most energy-efficient motors, so there is no waste of electrical energy.

"GRI focuses on energy efficiency from the time of selecting machinery, where priority is always given to machines with variable speed energy motors and low energy consumption."