Making car parts from coffee? Yes, you read that correctly. Coffee isn’t only for helping you stay awake for work; it can also be utilized to make car parts! This process unfolded as follows: more than 62 million pounds of McDonald’s coffee chaff found itself in landfills (chaff is the skin that falls off during the roasting process). McDonald’s partnered with Ford Motor Company in its environmental sustainability program to minimize waste to the landfills. The research team at Ford worked day and night to discover that coffee chaff can be utilized to make car parts. This is the story of how coffee-bean skins were turned into eco-friendly headlights. CarSwitch, an online marketplace for certified used cars in Dubai, has compiled all the details.
How Ford is making headlights from discarded coffee chaff
The procedure is not very complicated. The first step takes place in South America, where these beans are cultivated. The beans are gathered, packed and sent off to the location of roasters. Roasters then perform the roasting process and the skin from the beans comes off. This chaff is then gathered and sent off to Competitive Green Technologies, a biotechnology company located in Ontario, Canada. The company plays the role of mixing the coffee chaff and plastic with each other. The mixed product is sent off to a company named Varroc where the headlights are molded and assembled.
The process involves pellets, which are formed from plastic and chaff. This material is then heated and combined properly before being placed in a mold and then pressure is applied. This pressure helps form the structure of each part. The time taken for each headlight to form is roughly somewhere between 30 to 60 seconds. The last step in this process is shipping these environmentally friendly headlights to Ford where they are installed in the cars.
Ford has a history of sustainability in its transportation
Given the worldwide environmental sustainability movement, companies have employed research teams to find ways to manufacture products in a way that causes lesser harm to the environment. Ford has a history of implementing environmentally friendly alternatives to make their cars environmentally sustainable. They have used coconut fibre mats in the Ford Focus, rice hull electrical covers in the Ford F150 and cellulose-based composite made from recycled paper in waste in some center consoles and cup holders. They have committed their production teams to reduce the impact of their vehicles on the environment.
Ford is looking for more ways to collaborate with Mcdonalds
Ford has collaborated with McDonald’s to reduce the waste by using recycled plastic as an alternative for traditional plastic. Ford aims to make the plastic used in its vehicles 100% sustainable. The sustainability effort just doesn’t stop here; Ford is excited to announce that it’s looking into other waste products of McDonald’s such as peels that come off oranges and potatoes. The future does look promising and exciting!
You can also check out this largest eco-friendly cars facility in UAE if you are considering buying an eco-friendly car! CarSwitch.com can help you find pre-inspected, eco-friendly, and well-maintained used cars in Dubai! Happy shopping!
