The Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team is pleased to confirm that it has achieved the coveted Three-Star Environmental Accreditation by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the governing body of world motorsport.
The team joins the FIA Formula One World Championship, the ABB FIA Formula E Championship and a small number of other motorsport teams and events in achieving the criteria required for the highest level of certification in the FIA’s flagship Environmental Accreditation Programme, which aims to help motorsport stakeholders to measure and enhance their environmental performance.
The team’s application was evaluated remotely by the FIA’s auditors in October with a thorough examination of environmental management practices at the team’s headquarters in Brackley.
The commitment to environmental sustainability is one shared by both the FIA, through its #PurposeDriven movement to act as a catalyst for positive change across world motorsport, and the Mercedes team. In March of this year, Mercedes-Benz announced a sustainable business strategy for its motorsport activities and ambitious steps towards carbon neutrality. Mercedes uses its Formula One and Formula E teams to pioneer innovation, facilitate technology transfer and showcase cutting edge sustainable mobility technology.
The Brackley team set the target of achieving net-zero carbon footprint by the end of 2020 and cutting CO2 emissions by 50 percent by 2022 (compared to 2018 baseline). Despite the challenge posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, the team is on course to achieve the projected reduction for 2020 through the transition to renewably sourced energy and gold-standard carbon offsetting.
The team has a robust plan in place for 2021 and beyond including: significant reductions in air freight; water gallon dispensers and reusable bottles to be available trackside; low-impact hotel stays and the use of hybrid vehicles for travelling staff; an improved commuting footprint; and the team aims to completely remove single-use plastics in catering, both at the factory and trackside, having had to postpone this action in 2020 due to Covid-19.
The team is continuing to play a part in the worldwide transition to hybrid and electric cars through our collaboration with Mercedes-Benz road car divisions in areas as diverse as thermal efficiency, electric and electronic systems, and simulation and data correlation. Engineers from F1, FE and automotive are benefiting from the regular exchange of skills, knowledge and innovation as developments in one area drive change in another, with motorsport serving as an important proving ground for high-performance hybrid and electric technology.
Using our skills and knowledge to have a positive impact outside motorsport is an important pillar of our sustainability programme. The UCL Ventura project, a collaboration between Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains (HPP), the University College London (UCL) and UCL’s teaching hospital UCLH, was the recent winner of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s President’s Special Award for Pandemic Services. Normally the site for engine and powertrain development for the Mercedes Formula One, Formula E and high-performance hybrid road cars, the HPP technology centre in Brixworth was repurposed to manufacture and deliver 10,000 CPAP breathing aids in just four weeks in March. Likewise, team members in Brackley mobilised through the UK’s first national lockdown to work on numerous projects to combat the Covid-19 pandemic, including contributing people and expertise to the Ventilator Challenge UK consortium as part of F1’s Project Pitlane.
More recently, the team’s Applied Science division worked with paralysed athlete Johnny Beer in his quest to support advances in electronic remedies for spinal cord injuries. Paralysed from the waist down at a young age, Johnny has developed and raced a FES BerkelBike which the team’s engineers helped to fine-tune. Functional Electrical Stimulation allows paralysed muscles to move again and Johnny’s racing career is second only to his desire to shine a light on the potential for electrical stimulation to help those with similar injuries. Johnny’s story is just one example of how the expertise and capability within Formula One can be directed to engineering a better future in many diverse spheres of activity.
Toto Wolff, CEO of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team commented:
“I am delighted that our team has achieved Three-Star Environmental Accreditation with the FIA. This milestone is the result of many months of hard work and commitment to develop and implement a best-practice programme to deliver our contribution to the environmental sustainability commitments of both Mercedes and Formula One. To achieve this, we have concentrated on embedding sustainable practice into our normal business operations, using innovative solutions drawn from our technical expertise to actively reduce our impact on the environment. It’s been an incredibly difficult but ultimately successful year for our team, and I am so proud of the commitment that every single member has shown to not only achieving success on track but to ensuring we are making a difference to the world around us. We will continue our work in 2021 and onward until we reach our goal of an absolute unavoidable minimum of CO2 emissions. Our parent company is leading the way for sustainable mobility in the automotive industry, and with the FIA and Formula One both committed to positive change within motorsport, we all stand together in our commitment to a more sustainable future.”
President of the FIA Environment and Sustainability Commission, Felipe Calderón, said:
“We are delighted to see that the Mercedes team’s impressive results on the track in recent years – having added a seventh consecutive FIA Formula One World Constructors Championship to its accolades in 2020 – have gone hand-in-hand with a strong commitment to environmental sustainability, and are recognising this with the highest level Three-Star FIA Environmental Accreditation. Formula One teams are at the cutting edge of technological development, with great potential to accelerate the innovations that will revolutionise the automotive world in the coming years. Competing at the pinnacle of motor sport also brings a significant influence over the way it is perceived by millions of fans, and to have the World Champion team, linked also with its parent global automobile manufacturer, showing this commitment to best practices and making tangible changes to its operations in order to protect the environment sends a crucial message. As part of the #PurposeDriven movement, we are confident that this accreditation will act as a catalyst for more changes throughout Formula One and motorsport as a whole.”
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