Greentech Lead America: Johnson Controls, a supplier of
automotive batteries and automotive battery recycler, will start production at
its fully integrated automotive battery recycling center in Florence, S.C.,
this summer.
Johnson Controls started the construction of the Florence
Recycling Center in 2011 after receiving an air permit from South Carolina
Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC).
The manufacturing portion of the facility is fully
enclosed and undergoing final touches.
The Florence Recycling
Center will serve customers’ needs in the growing mid-Atlantic region. This
facility will recycle used batteries
through company’s closed-loop recycling process, which entails moving new
batteries from its manufacturing facilities to retailers and distributors.
The $150 million center is expected to create an
estimated 250 new jobs and approximately 1,000 indirect jobs in the area.
“More than 97-percent of all automotive lead-acid
batteries in the United States are recycled, making them the most recycled
post-consumer product nationwide,” said Mike Carr, vice president and
general manager of Johnson Controls Power Solutions’ North American business.
Johnson Controls plans to apply for Leadership in Energy
and Environmental Design certification of the facility including geothermal
heating and cooling, green roofs, water reuse and recycling, and natural
lighting systems.
The company is also integrating the center into the
surrounding area by managing habitat for wildlife, participating in the S.C.
Department of Natural Resources Stewardship Program and ensuring storm water
management.
“This facility features some of the most advanced
and proven environmental control technology. It will enable us to continue to
responsibly recycle our customers’ used batteries, while maintaining a reliable
source of raw material to support battery production,” Carr added.
Milwaukee City and Johnson Controls in pact to create energy
efficient city
Recently, Johnson Controls partnered with the city of
Milwaukee for an energy efficient program that committed to make Milwaukee one
of the most energy-efficient cities in the U.S.