POWER PLAY
Toyota’s New Plano Campus Drafts Impressive Energy & Environmental Line Up
Plano, Texas (June 14, 2016) – Toyota is hitting multiple shots-on-goal to reduce energy usage and environmental impacts at their new Plano headquarters campus. The player bench is stacked with energy partners and programs to help achieve the goal of Platinum LEED Certification at the state-of-the-art campus.
“Toyota’s new headquarters campus will be a model for energy efficiency and sustainability,” said Kevin Butt, General Manager, Environmental, Toyota Motor North America. “Toyota has challenged ourselves to create a net positive impact on the planet by 2050, and these campus programs are one step in a series of global efforts to achieve this goal.”
Solar Shootout
SunPower Corp. will design and install the recently announced approximately 7.75-megawatt solar system. The system will be the largest corporate office on-site solar installation among non-utility companies in the state of Texas. In total, the system is expected to provide approximately 25 percent of the power needed for the new headquarters campus. The Plano solar array will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 7122 metric tons, or the equivalent of almost 1,000 homes electricity usage for a year, and position Toyota as the leader among auto companies in U.S. for installed solar power.
Renewable Hat Trick
MP2, a Texas-based power company, is on point for a five-year energy contract to power the Plano campus. The power play is all about renewables, including the SunPower solar system, wind, additional on-site generation in the future, and renewable energy credits. The flexible energy contract also allows for excess power generation to be sold back to the grid. This team play was coordinated by Power Priority Management, energy management solutions.
Everything from LED lights, to solar panels, to high-efficiency building shells will help cut down on the amount of energy used on campus. Multiple rooftops will feature specially designed roofs teeming with plant life to help manage rainwater, reduce heat and further insulate the buildings.
Flower Power Play
Exterior landscaping on the campus will reflect the native North Texas-appropriate habitat with savannah, oaklands and wildflower meadows. Beyond providing team members a beautiful place to meet or take a lunch break, these areas will provide various species – like endangered pollinators and monarch butterflies – with a natural habitat. Additionally, a wetlands area will be retained and preserved in the northeast corner of the campus, further supporting the site’s biodiversity.
Rain Body Check
Once all that native flora and fauna is established, there won’t be any need for expensive mowing, fertilizers, chemicals or artificial irrigation. In fact, only select activity-based areas will require watering, and even that will come through a state-of-the art rainwater capture system. Drain water from sinks and showers will also be used for flushing toilets in bathrooms of several buildings.
In late 2015, Toyota Motor Corporation announced the 2050 Toyota Environmental Challenge, a set of ambitious environmental goals to reach beyond net zero, and create a net positive impact on the planet. To learn more, please visit: http://www.toyotaglobal.com/sustainability/environment/challenge2050/
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM), the world’s top automaker and creator of the Prius and the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, is committed to building vehicles for the way people live through our Toyota, Lexus and Scion brands. Over the past 50 years, we’ve built more than 30 million cars and trucks in North America, where we operate 14 manufacturing plants (10 in the U.S.) and directly employ more than 44,000 people (more than 34,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (1,500 in the U.S.) sold more than 2.8 million cars and trucks (nearly 2.5 million in the U.S.) in 2015 – and about 80 percent of all Toyota vehicles sold over the past 20 years are still on the road today.
Toyota partners with philanthropic organizations across the country, with a focus on education, safety and the environment. As part of this commitment, we share the company’s extensive know-how garnered from building great cars and trucks to help community organizations and other nonprofits expand their ability to do good. For more information about Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.
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Media Contacts:
Jana Hartline: 310 779 0415
Media website: http://www.toyotanewsroom.com
Public websites:
http://www.toyota.com
http://www.lexus.com
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Published Jun 14, 2016 11am EDT / 8am PDT / 4pm BST / 5pm CEST