Volvo Green Planet Archives

Volvo Car Malaysia provides E-waste Green Box to dispose of electronic items responsibly

Volvo Cars is very well known as a pioneer in automotive safety, having built up its reputation over many decades. In fact, even when the company began business 94 years ago, its two founders – Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf Larson – declared that “Cars are driven by people. Therefore the guiding principle behind everything we make at Volvo is – and must remain – safety“.

Besides safety, the Swedish carmaker is also very conscious about protecting the environment and it has the same commitment to this as it does safety. The commitment is understood and undertaken by all its subsidiaries around the world and in Malaysia, Volvo Car Malaysia’s ongoing sustainability campaign – the Volvo Green Planet – which aims to bring greater awareness towards today’s pressing climate concerns and propel the brand closer to its long-term goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2040.

Volvo Car Malaysia (VCM) has partnered with E-waste Recycling Through Heroes (ERTH) to provide an avenue – in the form of an E-waste Green Box – for all Malaysians to responsibly dispose and recycle their used electronics items at Volvo Car dealerships nationwide, as well as at the Volvo Car Manufacturing Malaysia (VCMM) plant in Shah Alam, Selangor.

The dealerships and VCMM will have a dedicated E-waste Green Box located in a visible area where the general public, not just prospective customers, can drop off any devices or components running on electricity or battery that can fit into the box. This includes, but is not limited to laptops, mobile phones, monitors, tablets, printer, keyboard, batteries and gaming consoles. For bulkier items, individuals are encouraged to book a free pick-up service on www.erth.app.

ERTH is a registered organisation with the Malaysian Department of Environment (Jabatan Alam Sekitar) that collects, purchases and transports electronic waste to be recycled at local government-licensed recycling facilities. ERTH ensures that the recycling process is in line with the guidelines from the Basel Convention, an international agreement treaty designed to reduce the movement, transport and/or shipment of hazardous waste between nations.

“Responsible business is a fundamental part of Volvo Car Malaysia, which is why we are proud to collaborate with ERTH that ensures the electronic waste is recycled and repurposed in the correct manner and in accordance with guidelines that have been laid down. In an age where electronics are abundant, we partly contribute to the problem, so we need to also be a part of the solution. Recycling and repurposing is one of the best ways to offset one’s carbon emission, and we hope that more Malaysians can take part in joining us to create a greener future,” said Akhtar Sulaiman, Marketing and PR Director of Volvo Car Malaysia.

Volvo Cars, as a group goes, beyond its mission to reduce CO₂ emissions per car by 40% between 2018 and 2025 through electrification, and also tackles carbon emissions in all aspects of its business, from manufacturing and operations to its supply chain and even its approach to recycling and reuse of materials.

*Using trains instead of trucks for transporting finished vehicles away from the Volvo factory has reduced carbon dioxide emissions significantly in European operations.*

Embracing this commitment even on a local front, VCM, along with other Volvo Cars facilities around the world, has taken to more sustainable approaches to their business such as abstaining from single-use plastics and going paperless for all brochures and pricelists at its headquarters and Volvo dealerships.

“At Volvo, we walk the talk. Instead of only talking about sustainability, we drive it by embracing and integrating the practice into our business and day-to-day life. When coming up with the idea for the E-waste Green Box, we wanted to enable all Malaysians – and not just our customers and employees – so that together we can drive this sustainability journey together, for the greater good of our planet and our future generations, so that we leave behind a safer and greener world for them to live in,” said Akhtar.

Volvo’s new technology offers premium air quality inside the car

Volvo sales in Malaysia last year were the highest since 1999

Volvo, once the leading European brand in the Malaysian market, saw its position change after the 1980s. While the products always delivered on the promise of safety, quality and reliability, a pricing strategy that raised prices didn’t work out well and it took a decade to recover. At the time, a senior Volvo executive acknowledged that the idea that it costs Volvo as much to make a car as Mercedes-Benz or BMW meant it could charge almost the same was not necessarily the case.

Nevertheless, the brand slowly rebuilt itself and with a progressive line of products replacing dated models, it has found a niche on which it can grow. Like all companies, Volvo Car Malaysia (VCM) was hit by the effects of the pandemic on the economy and recorded a 56.1% decrease in sales compared to the previous year.

However, things rapidly changed in the second half of 2020 as the numbers surged, thanks to the incentive offered by the government in the form of exemption of sales tax. With Volvo models being assembled locally in Selangor, the exemption was 100%, meaning that customers saved on the 10% sales tax normally imposed.

Highest volume since 1999
This allowed pricing to be attractive and along with other companies, VCM saw a boost in sales to finish the year with 1,950 units delivered nationwide. This was a 3.6% increase in volume, surpassing the previous year’s sales figure of 1,883 units and it was also the highest number since the establishment of VCM in 1999.

“We are very proud of what Volvo Car Malaysia has achieved despite this turbulent time and challenges that we faced. Through the collective efforts of our dealers and staff, as well as the opportune timing of the government’s sales tax holiday, we were able to finish a challenging year strongly. For us, seeing the results of our efforts has further recharged our drive to bring more premium, safe and sustainable cars to Malaysians,” said Nalin Jain, MD of Volvo Car Malaysia.

High demand for luxury cars
During 2020, VCM recorded its second-highest sales of the year in July, after the tax exemption incentive under the PENJANA program began (it will continue until the end of June 2021). Mr. Nalin said this was an indication that the demand for luxury cars remains high as the car market began to normalise and the country headed towards recovery.

With the renewed interest, VCM reinforced its customer service channels and adopted new digital practices. It introduced a new Online Ordering System for customers to make bookings from their homes or offices, and implemented the Digital Silent Salesman 2.0. This is a platform that digitally displays all necessary details about the cars available in Malaysia.

The new digital practices are part of the company’s push for digital transformation across the entire value chain of its business and reflect its commitment towards its sustainability goals by eliminating printed brochures.

Greenterest Calculator
With sustainability as the forefront of its goals in the coming years, VCM kicked off the ‘Volvo Green Planet’ in the third quarter of 2020. This campaign is aimed at driving awareness about the impact of high carbon footprint, which can be calculated via a Greenterest Calculator. It will bring the conversation to its customers with fully-electric test drives of their cars in a program known as ‘Green Drive’ and dispensing Green Seeds as a token to champion cleaner air.

Recharged 2021 ahead
Based on the past year’s performance, VCM aims to ride on the momentum from 2020, entering 2021 with renewed purpose and recharging all areas of its business. “2021 will be a big year for Volvo Car Malaysia as we look to switch all aspects of our business to incorporate more sustainable solutions and also bring in more products offerings to suit the different needs of Malaysians while helping them make more sustainable choices,” said Mr. Nalin.

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