Ford Motor Company said it is planning to use coconut fibers as a renewable feedstock in molded plastic parts for its vehicles.
Partnering with branded consumer product manufacturer Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, the move by Ford will help to reduce the use of petroleum and make the parts lighter and more natural-looking, AP reports.
Dr. Ellen Lee, a Ford Motor Company technical expert on plastics, said, “This is a win-win situation.”
“We’re taking a material that is a waste stream from another industry and using it to increase the sustainability in our vehicles,” she said, reports AP.
Ford Motor Company shares were at 10.6 at the end of the last day’s trading. There’s been a -8.1 percent change in the stock price over the past 3 months.
Meanwhile, the auto maker giant said its November U.S. Sales rose 13.3 percent to 166,865 vehicles from 147,338 vehicles in the same month last year, MarketWatch reports.
Car sales for the month of November declined 8.8 percent year-over-year to 48,322 units from 52,985 units.
Ford said that it plans to build 675,000 vehicles in the first quarter of 2012, up 3 percent (18,000 vehicles) compared with first quarter 2011, reports MarketWatch.
The company is aiming to build 674,000 vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2011, an increase of 14,000 vehicles from the previous forecast.
