TotalEnergies has announced its Fit for the Future award will open to applicants for a second year, championing the sustainability initiatives of independent workshops.
Now in its second year, the TotalEnergies Fit for the Future award celebrates independent workshops who are taking steps to make their businesses, and motoring, more sustainable.
Free to enter for eligible workshops, the Fit for the Future winner will receive a prize package worth £5,000 to help them continue to improve the sustainability of their business and customer offering.
David Valentyne, Aftermarket Sales Manager at TotalEnergies UK, commented: “Workshops are playing a critical role as the switch to cleaner motoring accelerates.
“The number of electric vehicles on our roads is increasing, and with the sale of new petrol, diesel, LPG and hybrid vehicles being banned from 2035, the industry is adapting its customer offering, services and facilities.
“But EVs still make up less than 3% of the overall car parc in the UK. ICE vehicles still predominate, and the average age of the fleet is rising as people hold on to their cars for longer – not least due to cost pressures. A high standard of maintenance, including essential actions like oil top ups and changes, are essential to making sure today’s vehicles are running effectively and as cleanly as possible in this interim period until alternative fuel vehicles become more accessible and more widely spread. Put simply, a well cared for engine is going to last longer and run more cleanly.
“At the same time, workshops are facing new environmental regulations, the challenge of managing the cost of compliance as well as energy, and investing in new tools and skills to cater for an increasingly electrified fleet as well as changing OEM requirements and driver preferences.
“This is no mean feat for workshops. They are having to make preparations to ensure their businesses are ready to meet the needs of the customers of tomorrow while also keeping up with today’s requirements.”
The Fit For the Future prize packages include:
- Quartz Package: £3,000 of Quartz lubricant delivered in TotalEnergies’ eco-efficient 100% recyclable packaging solution, and one year’s worth of waste oil collection and recycling
- EV Package: Includes supply of 22KW dual EV charge point and EV training for one technician
- Energy Package: Includes a full on-site energy audit and a £2,500 voucher to help implement any recommended energy efficiency measures.
Examples of qualifying initiatives may include:
- Workshop carbon footprint reduction
- New services or facilities for EV or other alternative fuelled vehicles
- Recycling or waste management programmes
- Solutions or services to help customers reduce the environmental impact of motoring
- Renewable energy generation or investments
- Using site land to benefit nature and biodiversity
- Community or charitable projects focused on the environment
The inaugural Fit for the Future award was won last year by Mill Lane garage in Cheshire, with the judges impressed by its tree planting and solar power initiatives.
PJ Starkey, owner of Mill Lane Garage, said:“We wanted to do anything we could to improve sustainability especially as we’re in a trade which by its nature is a hostile environment for the planet and nature…We are really pleased to have chosen the Quartz Package prize, which will bolster our sustainability efforts in a big way. Fit for the Future is a terrific initiative – a big thank you to TotalEnergies for recognising all of our sustainability efforts with this award.”
