News

27 March 2012 

Inauguration of the SKF-Chalmers UTC for Sustainability

The journey officially begins.....

A journey of a thousand miles begins with one small step, so the Chinese proverb goes.

The SKF-Chalmers UTC is well and truly on its journey in finding innovative responses for sustainability, after the official inauguration on 27th March 2012. 

It was a truly inspiring launch with Karin Markides, President of Chalmers, opening an afternoon of interesting and provocative presentations. The commitment of Chalmers to sustainability is aptly demonstrated by its central vision “for a Sustainable Future”. Whilst the placement by SKF of the UTC at Chalmers is indicative of the depth of knowledge and ability that Chalmers has in this area.

Tom Johnstone, President and CEO of AB SKF, reinforced the commitment that SKF has already shown to sustainability. Tom underlined some of the achievements of recent years such as the development of “SKF Care” (a comprehensive sustainability approach), the concept and application of Beyond Zero (positive impact reductions for customers through decreased friction and weight) and the development of knowledge in life cycle management (addressing the environmental impact of products across the life cycle).

There was a high level of anticipation surrounding the four projects underway at the UTC. From examining the potential of the base of the pyramid concept for sub-Saharan Africa, closing the loop, organisational capabilities for life cycle management, through to utilising material flow analysis in the supply chain.  (Read more on the projects)

Alan Beggs, Senior Vice President, Group Technology Development, illustrated the depth of knowledge that SKF has, and the complexities involved in the bearings industry and supporting technology. The strategy of developing UTC’s and the importance of collaborating with universities to develop and utilise knowledge was also emphasised. 

Prof. Anne-Marie Tillman, Director of the UTC (and Head of the Division of Environmental Systems Analysis, Chalmers) highlighted the importance of this new form of collaboration between industry and academia. The role of mutual learning between the key stakeholders is central on the sustainability journey, if the next level of innovative solutions are to be obtained. 

Life cycle assessment is a complex and inter-disciplinary discipline, and requires careful communication depending on the particular audience. This was the overriding message from Birger Löfgren, who presented some of the findings from his on-going PhD research. For instance, on the production line machine operators require sets of information that is specific and targeted to them. 

Finally, Prof. Roland Clift (Emeritus Professor of University of Surrey, and Guest Professor at ESA, Chalmers) rounded off the proceedings with a delightfully insightful summary, of some of the critical challenges on the journey towards sustainability. Quoting Tim Jackson, Prof Clift described sustainability as “the art of living within ecological limits”. The challenges for the UTC collaboration include researching improvements in efficiency, material recovery, service life, re-engineering and new business models. 

Sustainability implies that these solutions need to be applied in an ethical and equitable fashion if the actions are really going to meet the demands along the sustainability journey.