Operations > 

Environmental Impact of Our Suppliers

We rely on thousands of suppliers to provide the materials, parts and services we need to make our products. By sharing best practice between us, we can help them to lower their costs, improve the quality of their products and services, and meet their own sustainability targets.

How We’re Driving Change

A Complex Supply Chain

As well as directly managing the impacts of Ford-owned and operated facilities around the globe, we also have a responsibility to help our suppliers reduce their environmental footprint while ensuring social standards.

The automotive supply chain is complex, with many tiers of suppliers and sub-suppliers between the original source of the materials used in the manufacturing process and the likes of Ford. Our supply chain includes suppliers of parts and components for vehicle production, as well as indirect suppliers of facilities, equipment, materials and services.

We use the Partnership for A Cleaner Environment (PACE), our supply chain sustainability initiative, to reduce the overall environmental impact of Ford and our supply chain partners.

Our Supply Chain

Operations

$110+ billion global spend on goods and services

67 Ford manufacturing sites

 

Production Suppliers

1,200+ Tier 1 supplier companies

60+ countries

4,400+ supplier sites

100,000+ parts manufactured

500+ commodities sourced

 

Indirect Suppliers

c.10,000 supplier companies

600+ commodities managed

Understanding Our Suppliers’ Impact

To better understand our suppliers’ greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and water use, and address the risks and opportunities associated with them, we survey a selection of our supply base every year, using the CDP Supply Chain program’s Climate Change and Water Security questionnaires.

The production suppliers and indirect suppliers of logistics and information technology services surveyed are selected based on the emissions or water intensity of their operations, their geographic footprint and the strategic nature of their relationship with us.

Together, these two surveys provide us with qualitative and quantitative information about how our suppliers manage environmental risks and impacts, helping us to identify “hotspots” for GHG emissions and water use.

Our Performance

A Lighter Supply Chain Footprint

We work with thousands of suppliers, sharing best practice and helping them reduce the environmental footprint of their operations.

264 suppliers surveyed using CDP Supply Chain questionnaire (81% response rate)

209 suppliers surveyed using CDP Water questionnaire (75% response rate)

81% of suppliers reported integrating climate change into their business strategy in 2017 (2016: 82%)

69% of suppliers reported having a water-related target or goal in 2017 (2016: 64%)

81% of suppliers reported having an emissions reduction target or goal in 2017 (2016: 64%)

Next in This Section