Use of Automatic vehicles in Transportation

Introduction
Automatic vehicles are used across the globe for transportation from one point to another. The automotive industry comprising of passenger vehicles and heavy-duty trucks are a key source of pollution the in the world, comprising of ozone, particulate matter, in addition to other smog-forming emissions. Notably, passenger vehicles are a key contributor to pollution, generating substantial amounts of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxides, in addition to other pollution. Statistics indicate that transportation constituted more than 50 percent of the carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides, as well as approximately 25 percent of the hydrocarbons discharged to the air (Holdsworth, 2018). In this regard, in recent years, automotive corporations have made significant efforts to develop innovations and technologies that provide means of diminishing transportation-associated air pollution and climate change emissions. An emission reductions level from automotive vehicles is pivotal for attaining air quality standards and safeguarding the environment.
One company that has been on the front position of steering sustainability is Valeo, a corporation based in France that partakes in the manufacturing of automotive parts. The company manufactures and unveils products that help auto makers in the reduction of emissions. Based on Forbes, Valeo is ranked as the third most sustainable company in the world with a sustainability score of 83.6 percent (Strauss, 2018). As an international automotive supplier, Valeo operates in 33 different nations in designing innovative technologies as well as systems that will ensure that vehicles of tomorrow are more natural, self-sufficient, connected and environmentally friendly. Key sustainability figures in Valeo’s website indicate that the company has spent 17.2 million euros in environmental protection and investment and another 1.9 billion euros spent in research and development. What is more, the company has made significant investments on its employees for further growth and advancement by the company as it has spent 2.2 million training hours in the 2017 fiscal year. Most of all, in the past five years, Valeo has facilitated a 5 percent direct and indirect carbon dioxide emissions declined since 2009 (Valeo, 2018).
Strategies of Natural Capitalism
Valeo has ventured into different areas of Natural Capitalism in their fundamental objective of becoming more sustainable and environmentally friendly corporation. One of the strategies of natural capitalism that Valeo has delved into is radical resource productivity. This is an approach of preserving natural sustainability by employing approaches such as diminishing depletion, decreasing pollution, or underpinning of economies. Valeo creates innovative products as well as systems that facilitate the protection of the environment, diminish carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions in addition to the promotion of the development of intuitive, connected and more autonomous driving. A fitting instance is the transmission automation innovation. Numerous technologies add to this feature including automatic transmissions, automated manual transmissions and double clutch transmissions. Notably, the double clutch transmission decreases carbon dioxide emissions by between 6 percent and 10 percent as compared to traditional or customary automatic transmissions. Valeo has invented the wet and dry double clutch technologies. Valeo has designed a Dry Double Clutch module with lesser CO2 intake and discharges than a Wet Double Clutch. What is more, its design features less constituents than rival products, which makes it more dependable.
A second dimension of Natural Capitalism that is delved into by Valeo is biomimicry. In delineation, biomimicry is an approach that aids in facilitating the maintenance of environmental sustainability by incessant reuse of materials in closed sequences and eradication if toxicity. It lays emphasis on imitating the nature in systems and processes and attempting to utilize approaches through the use of nature to obtain resolutions to existing sustainability problems. Valeo has made significant efforts in creating bio-inspiration and biomimetic designs in its automotive parts. In addition, the aspect of biomimicry is embraced by Valeo in terms of reuse. Notably, 98 percent of the new generation of Valeo i-STARS starter-alternors are recycled and also 94 percent of Valeo e-superchargers are recycled. This incessant reuse of materials aids in the eradication of toxicity (Valeo, 2018).
Triple Bottom Line: Social, Environmental, & Economic Sustainability (People, Planet, Profit)
The Triple Bottom Line is delineated as an accounting framework that integrates three dimensions of performance including the financial, social and environmental dimensions. These dimensions are commonly referred to as people, planet, and profits. Valeo is dedicated to being socially and environmentally responsible and contributing in a positive manner to the communities in which it operates. Imperatively, Valeo motivates community innovations in all of its business operating sites across the globe. Remarkably, out of the corporation’s 155 operating locations, 100 percent have launched at least one community action. In Brazil, Valeo launched an educational program assisting youngsters from underprivileged backgrounds to attain technical qualifications acknowledged by the nation’s Ministry of Education. Furthermore, in Spain, Valeo participated in a program for racing against cancer including activities for screening and preventing the disease.
Sustainable Economic System
A key manner in which a society could develop and advance a sustainable economy is by means of biomimicry. This is an approach to innovation that searches for sustainable solutions to human challenges by imitating time-tested patterns and strategies of nature. Valeo has directly affected the economic structure in the different nations in which it undertakes it business operations. Through the provision of education, training to employees through workshops, and ensuring a better living for the local citizens. This not only reinforces the company’s operations, but at the same time provides a more sophisticated and trained society in its entirety, which other corporations and establishments can profit from.
Conclusions/Recommendations
Valeo is an established and recognized leader through sustainable operations in the automotive industry. Through the designing and manufacturing of automotive parts that reduce carbon dioxide consumption and emission to the atmosphere, Valeo has enabled automotive companies in the reduction of pollution in the air. The corporation continues to improve by setting goals for environmental performance. The goal of Valeo is to diminish direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions as a percentage of sales by 8 percent between 2016 and 2020. The company is also continuing to improve the countries in which it has its different operations by rendering education, training and business prospects to the local communities. My recommendation to Valeo would to invest additional time and resources into designing more sustainable and eco-friendly automotive parts. The automotive industry continues to grow and develop with a greater number of individuals purchasing cars but demanding for more environmentally sustainable products. Valeo stands a great chance of capitalizing on this opportunity.
Evidence Log

Evidence
1. 98 percent of the new generation of Valeo i-STARS starter-alternors are recycled and also 94 percent of Valeo e-superchargers are recycled
2. Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution; 1999, Paul Hawken. Natural capitalism acknowledges the important interdependency between the production and use of human-made capital and the maintenance and supply of natural capital.


Interpretation
1. Valeo has made significant efforts to ensure that it can recycle an reuse its parts in order to diminish toxic and pollution levels in the air
2. The sustenance and supply and natural capital is advanced and promoted by the automotive industry. A great deal of the major corporations in the industry in the present day comprehends the significance of sustainability and offer programs to advance it. Independent companies are delving into different initiatives that are purposed to decrease the emission and pollution levels into the atmosphere.





References
Holdsworth, M. L. (2018). Vehicles, Air Pollution, and Human Health. Union of Concerned Scientists. Retrieved from: https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-vehicles/vehicles-air-pollution-and-human-health#.W_dXTzgzbIU
Strauss, K. (2018). The World's Most Sustainable Companies, 2018. Forbes. Retrieved from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2018/01/23/the-worlds-most-sustainable-companies-2018/#57e190a132b0
Valeo. (2018). Double Dry Clutch. Retrieved from: http://www.valeo.de/en/our-activities/powertrain-systems/technologies/dry-double-clutch-358.html
Valeo. (2018). Environmental Responsibility. Retrieved from: https://www.valeo.com/en/environmental-responsability/