Sustainability

In the search for sustainability, the journey is the reward. And it is this road to the future that Kärcher still follows with undying dedication after so many years. For Kärcher, sustainability is simultaneously founded on the principles of economy, social responsibility and environmental protection. Sound finances and appropriate revenues, earned as a consequence of fair practice in our attitude to the community and responsibility in the use of resources. This is the meaning of sustainability that Kärcher has defined as their corporate objective: a business ethic founded on responsibility for the community and the environment we live in.

The best kind of energy is energy that is not consumed in the first place. Kärcher continually reduces primary-energy consumption. Various heat-recovery systems work with enormous efficiency. For instance, the waste heat from plastic injection moulding is used to heat neighbouring facilities. Annual savings: 19,000 litres of heating oil and 51,300 kg of CO2. This corresponds to the amount of fuel needed to drive a family car a distance of 225,000 km. Thanks to very high cos-p values of 0.98 to 0.99, original Kärcher battery chargers ensure that almost 100% of the charging energy is actually stored. Just two of many examples of technology dedicated to maximum energy exploitation.

Achieving more with less. Or even more. The potentials here are as diverse as the range of Kärcher products. Kärcher steam cleaners work without any need for chemicals harmful to the environment. Innovative fleece materials improve the cleaning performance so far that cleaning agents are in most cases even unnecessary. Wherever necessary, innovative dosing systems significantly reduce the amounts of cleaning agents required. Depending on the application, numerous other technical features designed to improve efficiency lead to significant reductions in energy and cleaning agent consumption of up to 30% and more.

Concentration on essentials also includes the art of achieving more with less. Because less really can be more. For instance, when machines with fewer parts are more efficient. Because, fewer parts means fewer materials used, lighter weight, lower energy consumption and, in turn, reduced environmental impact. Kärcher has been committed to the principle of using as few parts as possible for many years now. Today, Kärcher machines have an average of 20% fewer parts than comparable products made by other manufacturers, even though they have identical technical refinements such as cleaning agent dosing, filter dedusting and soot-particle filters. Kärcher cleaning agents are also environmentally-compatible thanks to more than 90% biodegradability and are free of solvents and additives as a matter of principle. Sold in the form of concentrates, they also save materials, packaging and transportation costs.

The future of energy lies in regenerative sources. And this future has long since been a reality at Kärcher. Two solar power stations with an output of 30 kWp generate around 33,000 kWh per year. A geothermal plant exploits underground, geothermal energy for heating in winter and air conditioning in summer. With 88% lower energy input. The wood-chip heating plant alone saves 340,000 litres of heating oil every year, the equivalent of preventing the emission of over 1 million kilograms of CO₂.