The FINANCIAL — Kia Motors Corp. announced on November 29 that its Soul urban crossover vehicle and European Venga compact MPV have received the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) 14040 certificate from Germany-based TUV NORD in recognition of their environment-friendliness.
The LCA certificate is an objective indication that the Soul and Venga are eco-friendly vehicles that give environmental consideration throughout their entire life cycle, from development and manufacturing to use and disposal.
Kia Motors now has four models (cee’d, Sportage, Soul and Venga) that have been officially acknowledged as meeting international environmental standards.
In 2008, the Kia cee’d C-segment vehicle for Europe became the first Korean vehicle to obtain an LCA certificate and Design for Environment (DfE) certificate from TUV NORD. Most recently, the all-new Sportage CUV received the ISO 14040 life cycle assessment from TUV Nord in September 2010.
"Environmental certification is largely divided into the categories of eco-friendly design (ISO 14062) and life cycle assessment (ISO 14040). The LCA certificate is presented based on evaluation of potential impact on the environment. Input and output are quantified throughout a vehicle’s life cycle, spanning from procurement of raw materials and manufacturing to use and disposal," Kia Motors says.
The latest LCA results indicate that Soul and Venga emit 9.3% and 10.5% less CO2 emissions, respectively, during their life cycle compared to existing comparable models based on a driving distance of 150,000 km.
Kia’s Gwangju Plant in Korea, where the Soul is manufactured, and Slovakia Plant, where the Venga is produced, obtained ISO 14001 environmental certification in 2003 and 2009, respectively. These latest LCA certificates from TUV NORD reaffirm the production facilities’ environment-friendly nature.
Measures taken by Kia Motors from the new car design and development stages to minimize the environmental impact of automobiles include use of an eco-friendly check sheet, examination of recycling potential using 3D design blueprints, reaffirming eco-friendliness of the vehicle dismantling process, using eco-friendly materials, and shortening the manufacturing process by simplifying parts and improving materials.
Based in Germany, TUV NORD is a globally recognized agency with over 10,000 technical/scientific employees in 70 countries that provides certification services for various industries. Other prominent automakers that received the LCA certificate from TUV NORD include Daimler (Mercedes-Benz S, C, A and B classes) and Volkswagen (Passat, Golf and Polo).
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