FROM TYRES

TO USEFUL

GRANULES

JAK ŠKODA AUTO NAPOMÁHÁ

EKOLOGICKÉMU VYUŽITÍ ODPADU

I 

n the Czech Republic, the disposal of

used tyres is regulated by the Waste

Act. Tyre manufacturers and importers have to build a network of collection points where citizens can hand over

their used tyres for free. The carmaker

has been running its system of tyre collection since 2009. Thanks to continuous

system optimisation through a network

of authorised dealerships and other partners, the company has already recovered

over 5,000 tonnes of tyres, the equivalent

of about 11 football pitches.

To burn or to recycle?

How to deal with such a number of tyres?

Pass them on to be burnt or use them

to restore the areas affected by longtime burdens on the environment? Behaving like that, however, the carmaker

would completely deny the idea of a circular economy, which it promotes in line

with the Green Future strategy. Therefore, the company opted for waste conversion to secondary (recycled) materials

whose manufacturing also consumes far

less electric and thermal energy. Those

materials that can no longer be recycled

are burnt (used to generate energy). ŠKODA AUTO has found a partner in RPG Recycling, which processes the used tyres

to make rubber granules. They are used,

for example, to produce doormats, floor

tiles and playground equipment. Rubber granules are also used by the supplier Pilous, whose production provides,

among others, pads and interlay that prevent damage to parts during their transportation and handling. It is estimated

that almost 50 tonnes of granules will be

used in an environmental way in 2018.

THE FUTURE

BELONGS TO E-MOBILITY

NETWORK OF CHARGING STATIONS WILL BE

AVAILABLE WITHIN FIVE YEARS

T 

2012  294,93

he company ŠKO-ENERGO is responsible for

building the infrastructure

for electric car charging. ŠKODA AUTO is planning to produce these cars from 2020. “We

must be ready. We are installing the first charging stations on

the factory’s premises in May already. Others will follow over the

next five years, and their number will be based on actual demand”, says Jaromír Vorel from

ŠKO-ENERGO.

2013  432,80

Test Run

FRANTIŠEK PELECH

Recovery in tonnes

2009  95,23

2010  269,82

2011  281,04

2014  465,20

2015  557,97

2016  1 308,86

2017  1 478,19

The charging stations will be

put in place at parking spaces

on the factory’s premises. They

will be available for the employees parking in front of the plant

at the car parks near the gates.

Their number will reflect the development and requirements of

e-mobility in the Czech Republic. In the pilot project, several

test charging stations are being

built by different contractors directly in the main plant of Mladá

Boleslav. “We want to test all features, including the green energy supply, on this sample. We

will be delivering the ‘CO2 frei’

green energy to the charging

stations”, Vorel explains. The

places to install the first stations have already been selected in cooperation with the city of

Mladá Boleslav. “They will start

working in September 2018. One

rapid-charging station will be

installed at the City Hall’s parking area, and more regular stations will be installed close to

the swimming pool, Old Town

Square, Jaselská Street and the

football stadium. People will find

them at the car parks and recognise them by their signs”, explains Miroslav Žďánský from

ŠKO-ENERGO. The rapid-charging stations will complement the

existing ones, charging a car

within 20 to 30 minutes. “The future of e-mobility lies in the fact

that everyone will charge their

car at home or work, so they

won’t have to bother with anything”, Vorel adds.

Application’s Development

Apart from the physical construction of the stations, ŠKO-ENERGO is also developing a monitoring system for their operation and

an application with a booking

system. “For the first stage, we

have a database of authentication

cards ready for our users, which

we will hand over to the municipality. However, we see the future

in applications in which anyone

will be able to book their charging time on a smart phone”, as

David Hošek from ŠKO-ENERGO, who is in charge of the entire e-mobility project, describes

the vision. EVA JAROŠOVÁ

DAVID HOŠEK

ŠKO-ENERGO –

CONCEPTUAL

ENERGY

PLANNING

I started as a specialist at

Conceptual Project Planning

concerning electrical engineering,

measurement and regulation. At the

beginning of 2017, our company

focused on the first e-mobility

projects, in which I took part and

with which I am now fully occupied.

What I like about my job is that it’s a

promising new direction with

environmental overlap.

MAY 2018 ŠKODA MOBIL 7