– Climate change offers “opportunities for business“ says Bosch UK President
– Key note speaker, Professor David McKay, Chief Scientific Advisor to the Government, believes innovation is key to environmental challenges
UK business has been urged business to embrace the environment as an innovation challenge, not regard it as a threat.
In the opening address of the Bosch Forum at the House of Lords in London, Mr Peter Fouquet, President of Bosch in the UK, told an invited audience, that the company regarded the environment as a key driver of future profitability.
“We see significant economic opportunities in ecological challenges for the future because they require not less, but more sophisticated and advanced technology.”
Mr Fouquet said Bosch is making considerable investment in environmental technology and urged other businesses to follow their investment lead. “We currently invest 45 per cent of our research and development budget in technologies that help protect the environment and conserve resources. A good third of our sales are now generated by these products.”
Mr Fouquet also urged businesses to think laterally, outside of their own sectors to find solutions. “We can combine know-how from different areas of industry to find environmental solutions. For example, the use of lithium-ion batteries in mobile phones grew to lithium-ion batteries being used in power tools and lawn mowers and this battery and hybrid technology is starting to drive road vehicles.”
Highlighting increasing consumer awareness, Mr Fouquet said the time was right for business to plan for an oil-free future. “We must continue to build on consumer awareness of environmental technologies and put in place the right framework to support growth and produce products that reduce our impact on the environment.”
He continued. “The winners will be those companies who embrace the technology challenge presented by climate change and our environmental considerations to innovate and find solutions to the greatest threat we face as custodians of the planet.”
Mr Fouquet’s remarks were supported by Professor David MacKay, the Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, who highlighted the cost issue as a major barrier to entry for consumers. “Engineering will be the key to success. There is a need for innovation to bring down the cost of many products, which in turn will enable consumers to invest in the technology that can reduce their own carbon footprint.”
Press contact:
Jo Hudson
Robert Bosch Limited
Corporate Communications
Tel: +44 (0) 1895 878155
Email: Jo.Hudson@uk.bosch.com
The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. In the areas of automotive and industrial technology, consumer goods, and building technology, some 275,000 associates generated sales of 38.2 billion euros in fiscal 2009. The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its more than 300 subsidiaries and regional companies in over 60 countries. If its sales and service partners are included, then Bosch is represented in roughly 150 countries. This worldwide development, manufacturing, and sales network is the foundation for growth. Each year, Bosch spends more than 3.5 billion euros for research and development, and applies for some 3,800 patents worldwide. With all its products and services, Bosch enhances the quality of life by providing solutions which are both innovative and beneficial. The company was set up in Stuttgart in 1886 by Robert Bosch (1861–1942) as “Workshop for Precision Mechanics and Electrical Engineering.” The special ownership structure of Robert Bosch GmbH guarantees the entrepreneurial freedom of the Bosch Group, making it possible for the company to plan over the long term and to undertake significant up-front investments in the safeguarding of its future. Ninety-two percent of the share capital of Robert Bosch GmbH is held by Robert Bosch Stiftung GmbH, a charitable foundation. The majority of voting rights are held by Robert Bosch Industrietreuhand KG, an industrial trust. The entrepreneurial ownership functions are carried out by the trust. The remaining shares are held by the Bosch family and by Robert Bosch GmbH.
Additional information can be accessed at www.bosch.com.