Inside the Ford Core Recovery Program, which has been repurposing parts for more than a decade
By Kathy Sena
We all do it. We recycle our glass, our plastic, our newspapers—but what about our vehicle’s parts when something needs to be replaced? As a Ford owner, you’re covered. Ford takes recycling seriously. In fact, this year marks the 10-year anniversary of the Ford Core Recovery Program, the company’s lead effort to recycle and reprocess damaged vehicle parts.
The program oversees the collection, remanufacturing and recycling of damaged parts from Ford vehicles that have been repaired through the company’s dealer network. Items from sensors to windshield-wiper motors and fuel injectors are included, and according to Kim Goering, Ford manager of remanufacturing and recycling programs, 120 million pounds of material have been kept out of landfills since the program’s inception. Two years ago, Ford added bumpers and headlights to the list, and about 62,000 bumpers and 26,000 headlights have been recycled already.
“These bumpers are typically between five and six feet long and can yield as much as 20 pounds of material after they have been processed,” says Goering. “That adds up fast and makes it pretty easy to see how much of an impact the program makes—and with just one category.”
The program was created in 2003, in part because vehicle components had become increasingly complex and expensive, making it more important than ever to recycle and reuse parts whenever possible. For example, think about the headlights on your parents’ car when you were a kid. Back then, headlights were pretty basic, consisting mostly of a bulb, a glass lens and a reflector. Today headlight assemblies are a major part of the vehicle in terms of both design and function—consisting of expensive plastics, advanced bulb technology, additional wiring harnesses and more.
“Most parts that come back to us through the program still have a lot of life left,” says Goering. “Even more important, however, is that Ford strongly believes it’s just the right thing to do from an environmental perspective.”
GOING GREEN, BY THE NUMBERS
120 million Total pounds of damaged vehicle parts that have been processed through the Ford Core Recovery Program
62,000 Bumpers recycled through the program since being added in 2010
85 Approximate percentage of each Ford vehicle that is recyclable
26,000 Headlights recycled through the program since 2010