The way we work, day in, day out, can make a big difference in terms of sustainability. We sat down and looked at every aspect of our operations and identified numerous areas where we can make positive changes. By doing things differently, tightening up and using new technologies, we’ve not only saved eight weeks’ lead time in delivery time, we’ve devised and instilled a new way of working that mother nature would approve of.
Many companies talk about sustainability, but how many can prove it? EnviroVent can. By holding ISO 14001, we can actually evidence our environmental management impacts and processes. It’s not a one-off vanity trophy, it’s certified on an annual basis by a third party compliance company. Our environmental management system sits under ISO14001 and constantly reviews our environmental impact, improving and developing where possible.
When we carry out installation work we often have to rip out materials. Rather than dumping these waste materials, EnviroVent engineers carefully remove it from site and take it to their stores. We then employ the services of a number of specialist waste companies to manage the waste responsibly. This way, we manage to recycle 94% of the waste.
We are proud to comply with two key pieces of legislation. WEEE and Packaging compliance means that we have engaged with specialist companies to ensure that we are fully compliant with their standards. We selected a packaging compliance company that only purchases Packaging Waste Recovery Notes from the UK. So the financial contributions we pay are reinvested in the UK waste market.
We commissioned a thorough environmental impact assessment, carried out by an independent company, in 2011. The report stated that our production works’ environmental impact was minimal as most of the work did not involve machinery. Since our processes have changed little since then, we can state with confidence that this still applies.
By fitting tracking devices to all our commercial fleet, we have managed to reduce overall fuel consumption by an incredible 30%. It enables our internal installations team to adhere to planned routes which are the most efficient and reduce the miles driven. Our trackers monitor driver behaviour, fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. The result is a 38% reduction in CO2 emissions, 47,000 litres less fuel used and a saving of over £45,000 over 5 years.
We believe passionately in supporting our local community and economy, which is why we are proud to manufacture our products in our own factory in North Yorkshire. This also enables us to maintain the strictest levels of quality control. Wherever possible, we use local suppliers which reduces transportation miles and our carbon footprint. We also create two local jobs for every 10,000 products specified.
Fuel efficiency is paramount when we procure our fleet of vehicles and we maintain ours to manufacturers’ recommendations. When we buy new, we buy Euro 6 compliant vehicles with the addition of Ad-blue which reduces CO2 emissions and increases fuel efficiency. In fact, we’re about to more than double our Euro 6 fleet numbers. When vehicles come to end of life, we sell them to local businesses who sell them on or break them down for spare parts.
After reviewing our car policy, we’ve introduced a number of mild hybrid cars. These have a battery that self-charges by using the energy from the brakes and continually runs alongside the engine. The battery doesn’t need to be plugged in and therefore consumes no electricity. It also runs continually unlike plug in hybrids that kick in under 30 mph.
Running a warehouse involves vehicles entering and exiting regularly. Every time this happens there is a risk of heat loss. We have fitted fast action shutter doors to reduce the time it takes for the doors to open and close. This has dramatically reduced heat loss, helping to save on heating costs and also lessening our environmental impact.
Packaging is a serious issue. That’s why we’ve an arrangement with a number of our suppliers to return packaging for reuse. We’ve also invested in reusable packaging for certain component parts, such as the cells for the single room heat recovery unit and loft unit feet. We reuse and rework pallets and where possible break down broken pallets to build new ones, with any remaining wood sent to recycling.
© EnviroVent Ltd 2024. All right reserved. Part of S&P Group.
