How a Water Challenge in Torreón Took Essex Solutions to Schaeffler's Main Stage

Water scarcity is not an abstract sustainability issue in Torreón, Mexico. It is a local reality, and one that can affect the resilience of manufacturing operations within the region.

That challenge became the starting point for a project at the local Essex Solutions facility, where the team developed a grey water reuse initiative designed to reduce pressure on water resources while strengthening the reliability of the operation.

Recently, Global Corporate Sustainability Manager Chloe LaPorte brought that story to Schaeffler’s Automotive Sustainability Summit, attending alongside European Sales Director of Automotive Thomas Horn.

Her presentation, “Turning Water Scarcity into Operational Resilience: A Grey Water Reuse Case Study,” was among 50-plus supplier best-practice presentations shared throughout the day. Nearly 100 suppliers participated in the summit, alongside Schaeffler customers, OEMs and other automotive industry stakeholders.

What began as a story about one facility quickly became a broader conversation.

Attendees asked questions about the project, how it was implemented, and how similar thinking could apply elsewhere. At the end of the summit, Schaeffler selected five presentations to be featured on the main stage for the full audience. Essex Solutions was among them.

“The project in Torreón started with a very real challenge facing the local operation,” LaPorte said. “What made it meaningful was finding a solution that could reduce environmental pressure while also making the facility more resilient. Seeing the level of interest from others in the industry reinforced that these are shared challenges, and that practical solutions can have value well beyond a single site.”

That response was significant.

As automotive companies look deeper into their supply chains, sustainability is becoming increasingly connected to how suppliers manage risk, continuity and long-term operating conditions. The Torreón project offered a tangible example of that connection, not as a concept, but as something already being put into practice.

Horn’s participation also helped bring the customer and market perspective into those conversations, connecting the work happening inside Essex Solutions facilities with the expectations shaping the automotive industry in Europe and beyond.

The recognition at Schaeffler’s summit was an important moment, but the stronger takeaway came from the discussion it created. A local challenge became a story worth sharing with a broader industry audience because it showed what can happen when sustainability is approached as part of how a business operates, plans and prepares for the future.

That is where the project carries its greatest value. It is not simply about what changed at one facility. It is about the thinking behind it: understand the risk, develop a practical response, and build a stronger operation in the process.

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