ENVIRONMENTAL FRIENDLY - ECO OFFICE REMOVALS
Our company is committed to produce and deliver quality professional office removals services. The Company recognises that its day to day operations impact on the environment in a number of ways.
We wish to minimise the potential harmful effects of such actions wherever and whenever this is practicable.
Our firm is committed to achieving environmental best practice throughout its business activities by:
- ensuring our activities are safe for our employees, associates, delegates, UK office movers and others who come into contact with our work
- complying with or exceeding legal requirements
- accepting reasonable responsibility for any harm to the environment caused by our activities and taking reasonable steps to remedy any damage
- monitoring purchasing practices and internal operations including energy and office furniture transport to ensure best use of natural resources and minimum environmental impact
- whenever possible reducing the environmental impact of goods and services supplied by adopting a 'cradle to grave' assessment and responsibility for them
- minimising the waste produced in all parts of our business
- working with our suppliers and other third parties associated with our business
- seeking to integrate environmental considerations into future business policy decisions
- ensuring associates understand and are accountable to these policy goals through communication and training
- communicating the policy as appropriate to our employees, customers and suppliers
- developing systems and generic office move plan to implement and review this policy.
INTRODUCTION
There are three key areas in which our firm has an impact on the environment:
Removal vehicles and office moving equipment- Energy
- Waste - office furniture recycling
Removals VEHICLES
There are a number of ways in which a vehicle fleet (commercial vehicles and company cars) are perceived to have an environmental impact. The key areas for attention are:
- Fuel consumption
- Noise and emissions
- Congestion
- Other
Fuel Consumption
The industry recognises that road transport is a significant contributor of carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas accounting for 18% of emissions. The only way to reduce this emission is to reduce fuel consumption and, as market leader possessing a significant fleet, we are able to play a major role in leading any programme concentrating on fuel usage reduction.
There are a number of ways in which we have already made significant progress in reducing fuel consumption. We play close attention to the highest standards of maintenance of our removal lorries, in accordance with government-set regulations, ensuring that vehicles are tuned to give optimum fuel economy. Careful attention is also paid to driver training to ensure fuel-efficient driving practice.
Speed limiters should be fitted to some of the vehicles and this practice should be extended throughout the group as appropriate. Limiters are set to 56 m.p.h. maximum. Strict monitoring of fuel consumption continues in order to identify areas for improvement and initiate action, e.g. training, to rectify inefficiencies.
We have always considered fuel efficiency to be an important criterion when purchasing vehicles. We continue to attach great importance to this and monitor all new vehicle designs in order to maintain not just a cost-efficient fleet, but also an environmentally friendly one.
Vehicle noise and emissions
Air-brake silencers are currently being fitted to our existing vehicle fleet. Once implemented this will form part of our standard specification for new vehicles.
Quietness is an important factor in our vehicle purchasing criteria. We constantly monitor the performance criteria of new removal vehicles to ensure that we run a ‘low noise' fleet.
Our industry's trade press reports on news relating to improvements in vehicle technology and we monitor such reviews and act upon them. Where advances in vehicle technology would allow us to improve our environmental performance, we will always adopt such technology into our fleet, e.g. fuel additives that reduce particulates and fuel consumption, when available, will be used by the moving companies we are working with.
Our company cars all benefit from the use of unleaded fuel and catalytic converters.
The removal industry, has ongoing discussions with engine manufacturers and fuel suppliers centring on the continued reduction of fuel emissions. Reducing sulphur content and increasing the cetane value of diesel fuel could reduce harmful emissions by as much as 50%. This can only be achieved by legislation and competitive pricing policy from the major oil companies, encouraged by preferential fuel tax treatment. We actively encourage this advance and we welcome further standards on fuel emission and other environmental legislation.
Congestion
Congestion in the UK, particularly in London, is a major problem and need to be taken in to account when planning an office move. With major growth forecast in vehicle numbers (particularly cars), a number of initiatives are required.
An improved and integrated transport infrastructure to reduce congestion would also considerably reduce carbon dioxide and other emissions.
Other
The company that services our vehicles recycles all used engine oil as well as offers electrical waste recycling. Regular vehicle maintenance also ensures that leaks and spillages are kept to an absolute minimum.
The chemical industry has made progress in introducing more environmentally friendly vehicle-cleaning materials. All firms should keep pace with these developments and should seek to progress appropriately, including the use of biodegradable chemicals. Furthermore, we always use a licensed sub-contractor to move and dispose of hazardous waste responsibly and in line with government regulations.
We recognise the value of air suspension and fit this, where appropriate, to reduce wear and tear on the roads. All new removal vehicles purchased should come with air-ride suspension.
We take the fullest precautions to ensure optimal road safety standards, thus minimising the risk of accidents. We set very high standards to our crews on the road and for the safety maintenance of our vehicles.
ENERGY
Through rigorous inspection and maintenance of our moving crates, warehouses and offices we already ensure high standards of efficiency and energy conservation. Greater savings could be sought through an energy audit.
We an energy review should be carried out to ensure that we are using the most effective and energy-efficient lighting.
Through an extensive training and ongoing communication programme we help to ensure that all our movers are energy-conscious. This extends from simple measures, like switching off lights, to a broader culture of general awareness incorporated by our staff into their everyday lives. Such measures could, if necessary, become part of our accredited quality office removals programme.
WASTE
Our policy is to reduce waste wherever possible and to use professional waste management contractors. We recycle certain packaging material on site and continually review the purchase of such equipment with a view to improving our recycling profile. Our staff use recycled paper where appropriate and endeavour to save paper wherever possible. We operate a paper recycling ‘green bin' scheme throughout the group.
CONCLUSION of the policy statement
These are just some of the examples of the ways in which we reduce energy consumption and conserve resources. We continue to examine a range of other possibilities in an ongoing programme to constantly improve our environmental performance.
To conclude, we recognise our responsibility to conduct our business in such a way as to have the minimum environmental impact on our staff, our customers, our neighbours, the wider community and when moving our client's businesses. Only by educating all employees about their responsibility as good citizens can we ensure that we avoid such wastage of resources and contribute, as a company, to the preservation of our environment.