Our sustainability policy is built upon good business practises, rather than the desire to be viewed as eco-warriors for the sake of good PR or wider marketing purposes. Indeed, we believe our green credentials are founded in good sense and financial prudence, so the following information simply details ‘what we do’ without elevation to some higher philosophical plane; it is not a copy-and-paste exercise from a green-washing text book. This information is neither exhaustive nor the end of the story, because living and working more sustainably is a continuous journey and one of which we are only at the very beginning.
We have extensive and comprehensive recycling contracts in place for all materials generated by our business, from an office level (for paper, ink toner cartridges and other ‘disposables’) through to the industrial compacting, baling and recycling of packaging in our distribution centres. Where we can avoid using even recyclable materials, we make it policy to do so: for example, using re-usable vessels instead of plastic/paper cups and offering filtered water instead of bottled.
We have always used recyclable materials in our packaging but for the last decade have been working to remove as much plastic as possible from the mix. In 2015, the company made the decision to accelerate this process as the cornerstone of a re-branding exercise, by redesigning EVERY item of packaging company-wide.
This investment served to a). remove nearly ALL plastic from our packaging by moving over to paper-based materials and b). reduce the total volume of materials used, by minimising every item of packaging.
As an example of how positive environmental actions make commercial sense on every level, this exercise has reduced the cost of the products (less packaging material, print and transport costs) and significantly increased the profit per square inch of the company’s in-store product displays.
Wherever possible, our products themselves are made from recycled and recyclable materials. Furthermore, because we design many of our products in-house, we can and do actively design sustainability into them, both through material choice and FEA techniques to reduce wastage.
We have a team of field-based staff and a fleet of company vehicles. The team’s call cycle is carefully managed to minimise road miles and the fleet is in the process of being converted to hybrid technology. As soon as the technology permits (on a practical level), that fleet will then convert to fully electric. The commercial benefit of minimising road miles speaks for itself; the significant upfront investment in greener vehicles is a longer-term investment, but one which will nevertheless yield returns in overall running costs and staff retention (due to tax benefits).
We have invested in replacing the majority of our building lights with automatic movement-sensing switches and LED fittings, in order to minimise the energy we use. The business uses a fair amount of heavy machinery throughout its operations; this is carefully maintained and regularly replaced to ensure that we are operating optimally with the latest, most efficient equipment. Efficient means energy efficient, but also time- and cost-efficient.
We have invested in the maximum solar energy infrastructure which our local electricity grid will permit. Every month this investment pays back by reducing the running costs of our business.
Every available inch of our estate is planted with trees and shrubs, contributing not only to the health of the environment but also to the pleasantness of the environment in which our teams operate. Good for nature, good for business.
Many of the best ideas for increasing our company’s sustainability come from our teams. We therefore encourage our employees to engage through our staff council. One important area where every member of our team can contribute to our sustainability is productivity. By identifying ways of achieving the same results with less input, we can automatically reduce our carbon footprint across the board.