Enterprise Awarded for Environmental Protection Measures
Best In Biz honors car rental company for its ecological practices
When you’re the world’s largest car rental company with a fleet of more than a million cars travelling more than 30 billion miles annually, you’d think that hard-line environmentalists would be protesting at every branch office around the globe. Fortunately for the conglomerate that also owns rental companies Alamo and National, that hasn’t been the case.
Instead Enterprise was bestowed by the Best in Biz Awards International for its measures to mitigate any damage to the environment. Adjudicated by a media panel representing some 11 companies, Best In Biz credited Enterprise for such sustainable measures as investing in fuel-efficient and green-technology vehicles, choosing more environmentally-friendly vehicles and adopting technology to create efficiencies in mobility services.
Best in Biz specifically recognized those Enterprise efforts, which won in the Environmental Program of the Year category, beating out computer technology company Hewlett Packard and Canada-based Resolute Forest Products for top spot. Enterprise was particularly praised for its methods of recycling and refining motor oil and oil filters for future use. Since adopting the measure in 2009, the company has recycled more than 11 million gallons of oil, which accounts for roughly 95 percent of oil regularly used in its fleet.
“Oil re-recycling and re-refining remains one of sustainability’s greatest stories,” said Mark Bouldin, president of Kleen Performance Products, the company responsible for Enterprise’s oil recycling program. “Enterprise Holdings is at the forefront of embracing and championing this very effective way to manage oil as a renewable resource and is clearly out in front within the rental fleet industry.”
Enterprise also doubled the number of hybrids and electric cars in its fleet in 2018, many of them from Hyundai, Tesla and Toyota. No other car rentals was mentioned in the Best In Biz results, although Enterprise’s competition has taken a few environmentally-friendly measures of their own. Hertz has operated a Green Collection department for years, with hybrids by the likes of Audi and VW. Avis hasn’t been crowing much about sustainability measures in the U.S. although its European offices have declared they were the first car rental company in the world to stick with a carbon neutral policy since 2000.
But as climate change becomes more of a pressing issue, chances are that the rest of the players will try to get more public attention to whatever measures they are undertaking. It may not earn them a Best In Bix award, but will certainly increase the motives of more environmentally conscious consumers to consider their business.