At the 2024 China Automotive Forum held on 12 July, SKF was honoured to receive the ‘2024 China Automotive Industry Excellent Case Award for Corporate Sustainability Practices’ issued by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). This honour is not only a recognition of SKF’s outstanding contribution in promoting the low-carbon and green development of the new energy automobile industry, but also a powerful testimony to the deepening of the concept of sustainable development in the entire automobile industry.
SKF has made remarkable achievements in the field of new energy vehicles by virtue of its profound industry deposits and technological innovation capability. The award-winning case, with the theme of ‘Green Drive, Innovative Bearings Helping New Energy Vehicles on Their Low-Carbon Journey’, vividly demonstrates how SKF injects strong impetus into the technological innovation of electric drive systems for new energy vehicles through technological innovation and material optimisation.
Mr Chu Hao, President of SKF China and Northeast Asia Automotive Division, said that winning the Outstanding Case Award issued by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) is a high degree of affirmation of SKF’s sustainable development practice in the field of new energy vehicles. Sustainable development is embedded in SKF’s DNA, and SKF will continue to adhere to the development direction of ‘smart’ and ‘clean’, constantly innovate products and technology solutions to meet market demand and industry trends, create value for customers, and help China’s automotive industry to move towards The development of China’s automotive industry is moving towards a greener, more sustainable and high-quality development.
Zhao Qingtao, Vice President of SKF China, said that SKF’s ESG construction in China not only focuses on its own capabilities and development, but also endeavours to carry out synergistic cooperation with the upstream and downstream supply chain, the government and industry organisations, and other stakeholders, and strives to build an ESG ecosystem for common development, so as to make the ESG a new platform for all parties to cooperate and win-win.
In the face of the opportunities and challenges of the booming new energy vehicle market, SKF launched a hybrid ceramic ball bearing and conductive ring combination programme to effectively solve the industry problem of galvanic corrosion. It not only improves the electrical corrosion resistance of bearings, but also significantly extends the service life of bearings, providing a solid guarantee for the stable operation of electric drive systems in new energy vehicles. In addition, SKF has also successfully developed innovative products such as high-speed ball bearings and low-friction third-generation wheel bearings, which have won the recognition of many automotive companies for their excellent performance and efficient solutions.
SKF always takes green and low carbon as the core driving force of development, and contributes to the achievement of global carbon neutrality by continuously optimising product design and production processes to reduce resource consumption and environmental pollution.
In recent years, with the awakening of global awareness of environmental protection and the accelerated advancement of the sustainability agenda, China’s automotive industry is experiencing unprecedented green changes. In order to lead the industry forward, CCAA took the lead in compiling and releasing three group standards, namely ‘Guide to ESG Disclosure in China’s Automotive Industry’, ‘Guide to SG Evaluation in China’s Automotive Industry’ and ‘Guide to the Requirements and Usage of ESG Management System in China’s Automotive Industry’ in 2023, which are aimed at guiding the automotive companies to strengthen the practice of social responsibility and to build up the image of green and low-carbon development.