Tested sustainability: the new Mercedes EQS has passed the environmental audit

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Tested sustainability: the new Mercedes EQS has passed the environmental audit-tested

From the manufacture of the raw materials to production and driving to recycling at the end of the car’s life: Mercedes-Benz examines all environmentally relevant aspects of a vehicle model with a life cycle assessment. Independent experts check this extensive documentation. As the first model based on the electrical architecture for large vehicles, the EQS 450+ has now passed the validation audit.

The so-called 360-degree environmental check offers detailed information on the topics of consumption, emissions and ecological balance as well as the use of renewable raw materials and recyclates. It can be downloaded as a pdf file here. The production of the high-voltage battery and the external charging operations in driving are important factors when it comes to the life cycle assessment of an electric car. In its model calculations, Mercedes-Benz assumes two different requirements: In the EU electricity mix scenario, the European electricity mix is taken into account for charging the high-voltage battery. In the regenerative scenario, on the other hand, renewable energy is used in the production of the battery cells and for the charging processes in the usage phase. In both scenarios, the EQS has a mileage of 300.000 kilometers based.

Mercedes would like to reduce the CO2 backpack during production

According to Mercedes-Benz, the components of the EQS, which are made from a proportion of resource-saving materials (recyclates and renewable raw materials), weigh over 80 kilograms. With a drag coefficient from 0.20, the EQS is currently the most aerodynamic production car in the world. Compared to an aerodynamically good electric car (CW value 0.23), there is an advantage in the range of four (WLTP cycle) to five percent (Mercedes measurement on the long-distance). And Mercedes also pays attention to environmental friendliness during production. This is how the roof of Factory 56, production site of the EQS, 12.000 photovoltaic modules. These have a maximum power of around 5.000 kWp and can thus cover around 30 percent of the factory’s energy requirements on average over the year. In total, the energy requirement in Factory 56 is reduced by 25 percent compared to other Mercedes-Benz assembly halls. A new yarn made of regenerated nylon was used for the floor coverings. One ton of this yarn (brand name Econyl) saves over 6.5 tons of CO2 compared to new goods. Around 40 percent of the roof area of Factory 56 is green, and recycled concrete is said to have been used for the first time in the front building. In 2022, a total of eight Mercedes EQ electric vehicle series will be produced at seven locations on three continents.

After use in the car, a second life is possible for batteries: for example, in an energy storage of the Mercedes-Benz Energy. Together with its partners, the company has already connected three large-scale storage systems with a total of around 50 MWh of energy from automotive battery systems to the German power grid. According to the company, the first 2nd-life battery storage system went online in October 2016 in Lunen, Westphalia.

The next step is the supply chain: the majority of suppliers, who account for around 90 percent of the annual purchasing volume, only want to supply parts that have been produced in a CO2-neutral manner in the future. They have declared their willingness to do so in a so-called “ambition letter”. From 2039 at the latest, only production materials that are CO2-neutral in all value-added stages will be allowed to pass through the Mercedes-Benz factory gates. As early as 2018, Mercedes-Benz began to create transparency in the complex cobalt supply chains for the battery cells. For this purpose, more than 183 companies should be identified and more than 60 audits have been carried out according to the guidelines of the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development / Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development). The production of the highly complex lithium-ion batteries at the Hedelfingen plant, part of the Mercedes-Benz location in Stuttgart-Unterturkheim, will be CO2-neutral from this year. As part of strategic partnerships, Mercedes-Benz has also agreed to purchase CO2-neutral battery cells, starting with the EQS.

Also: since 2005, Mercedes-Benz has been publishing 360-degree environmental checks as a result of the systematic integration of environmental aspects into product development in accordance with ISO guideline TR 14062. This means that the EQS model has a particularly favorable environmental balance, right from the factory, according to the company.

Sources: Mercedes-Benz – press release

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3 thoughts on “Tested sustainability: the new Mercedes EQS has passed the environmental audit”

  1. Pro tip for Mercedes:

    How much CO2 would you save if you simply deleted the optional leather interior of all produced vehicles?

    How many 100.000 tonnes of CO2 would save it, if Mercedes only exceeds only one year earlier from the production of combing electric vehicles?

    In any case, greenwashing is not saving our climate fast enough 😉

    Reply

  2. If a manufacturer and its suppliers want to become CO2-neutral, then usually only the electricity mix is shifted from the citizens in the direction of these companies, the bottom line is not much gained.

    The only positive thing about it is probably the PV systems on the roofs, the rest is marketing.

    New name for Dax group

    Daimler is now called Mercedes-Benz

    After the truck division was spun off, Daimler concentrated entirely on the business with cars and vans – and got a new name. Daimler becomes Mercedes-Benz – a renaming at a historically significant point in time.

    (Source: manager magazine.de – 29.01.2022)

    Mercedes-Benz and the other automakers should rather say goodbye faster from the burns and Phevs, which would bring the environment and the environment more than the CO2 Certificate-Schkaken.

    Reply

  3. “About 40 percent of the factory 56 roof area are greened,” Why no PV modules instead of chody grass / herbs?
    “Together with its partners, the company already has three major memory with a total of around 50 MWh energy from automobiles battery systems”
    If you have so many batteries close, the yield is so small or from where these batteries come from?
    Mercedes Benz Jest is good because they build a few e-cars? Or should one look at the total environmental embellishment with the burners?

    Reply

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