Workers inspect products at an Apple assembly plant in China. (Photo : www.applenapps.com)
An innovative stage introduced by Apple in the production of the latest iPhone could help suppliers in China, as well as reduce carbon emissions and improve efficiency, an Apple executive said on Monday, Sept. 21.
Lisa Jackson, vice president of environment, policy and social initiatives at Apple, said that the company has made a big change in the iPhone's aluminum enclosure. "We are able to cut carbon emissions for manufacturing that part of the phone by half," the Apple executive said.
According to the product environmental report released on its website, Apple was able to cut the carbon emissions of the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus by 16 percent and 14 percent, respectively, from last year's models.
Jackson told the Xinhua News Agency in a phone interview that Apple has re-engineered the production of its phone enclosures, so that less aluminum scrap is generated. Most of the enclosures are manufactured in China, Jackson added. She also said that rather than fossil fuels such as coal, hydroelectric power is used during aluminum smelting.
The Apple executive said that the change is important since "it makes (our) supply chain in China as well as in other places more efficient, and (we) use less energy and get more out of the aluminium."
According to the report, Apple worked hard to achieve its environmental and climate commitments in recent years. Currently, all its global facilities use 87 percent renewable energy while facilities in the United States use 100 percent.
In Sichuan Province, Apple is reportedly building a 40-megawatt solar power project, the first of its kind launched outside the United States, which is expected to add 80 million kilowatt hours of clean energy to the grid every year.
The project is expected to be completed by the end of this year and will produce enough energy to power all Apple's facilities in China.
At present, Apple has 19 corporate offices, including 17 in the mainland and two in Hong Kong. The company also has 20 retail stores in Chinese mainland and four in Hong Kong.
Jackson added that Apple is committed to reduce carbon emissions in its supply chain, accounting for 72 percent of its total carbon footprint. Re-engineering the production process of aluminum enclosures is part of its initiative, she added.
"It's the beginning of our answer to the problem of how to reduce the carbon footprint of our supply chain," Jackson said. "I think China benefits from this."
