Since 1938, Detroit Diesel has been a premier leader in the heavy-truck industry. They began as part of General Motors, building heavy-duty diesel engines used extensively by the military and roadbuilding contractors. By 1965, with growing demand for diesel engines, sales had tripled. In the 1980s, Detroit Diesel began developing a cleaner, more fuel-efficient heavy-duty engine, which quickly became the most popular heavy-duty engine in North America. In 2011, the company expanded its design and manufacturing scope beyond engines, and today Detroit Diesel is the largest diesel engine manufacturer in the United States.
As an industry leader, sustainability is a top priority for Detroit Diesel. They have campus-wide environmental initiatives underway, including programs for water conservation, energy efficiency, waste reduction and more. Detroit Diesel strives to minimize waste transferred to landfills and diverted over 97 percent of their waste (about 19,000 tons of material) to local recyclers last year. Due to these sustainability efforts, the State of Michigan recognized Detroit Diesel as a Clean Corporate Citizen (C3). The C3 program publicly acknowledges organizations that reliably demonstrate environmental stewardship.
As a subsidiary of Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA), Detroit Diesel also feed into much broader corporate sustainability goals. DTNA has plans to make its Truck Manufacturing Plants carbon neutral by 2025 and offer exclusively carbon neutral trucks and buses by 2039. With a 130-acre campus, Detroit Diesel has ample opportunity to contribute towards these goals. That’s why the company recently enrolled in DTE Energy’s MIGreenPower program, a voluntary renewable energy program that allows customers to reduce their carbon footprint by attributing their electricity use to DTE’s wind and solar projects.
Through MIGreenPower, Detroit Diesel has committed to an escalating enrollment that will ultimately support 100,000 megawatt hours of renewable energy annually in 2028, offsetting greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 15,412 passenger vehicles driven for one year. Enrolling in MIGreenPower is Detroit Diesel’s first step to becoming carbon neutral.
Want to learn more about DTE’s MIGreenPower program? Visit www.migreenpower.com.