In recent years, the impact of our behaviour on the environment has been brought into focus. From the plastic bag charge to Sir David Attenborough’s reporting of pollution in the world’s oceans, we’re beginning to take the necessary steps towards being more sustainable and aware of our actions on the planet.
If you’re a manager or owner of a company, you may already be making headway with reducing your carbon footprint and thinking more about waste management. Should you be looking for further ideas to help keep your company green, here are some eco-friendly measures that you could introduce in your day to day operations.
Why go green?
Before we can look at ways to make your business more sustainable, it’s important to know why you’re focusing on this. First, you’ll be helping the climate. Offices tend to consume a lot of energy and the larger the office space, the more energy it consumes. By adopting energy saving and eco-friendly measures, it can be possible to reduce the carbon output of these office spaces and this can impact positively on the environment.
Google, for instance, has been carbon neutral for over a decade. In 2019, the company announced that, for the second year, it matched 100% of its energy consumption with renewable energy, offsetting its output.
Second, as a business you can save money. On average, the UK spends £29.1 billion on energy annually. By picking up some simple ideas, you could save on your energy bills and channel this money into other aspects of your business.
So, what can you do to make a difference?
1. Use sea or rail shipments
If you use international couriers to do business, now is the ideal time to rethink how you do this. Whether you’re an e-commerce business that depends on imports and exports or your clients are based around the world and regularly ship products to you, opting to have them get to you via rail or sea can cut down on air traffic pollution.
To find the couriers that specialise in this service, use a price comparison site such as Parcel2Go. This can be an easy way to whittle down your options and find the right fit for your company.
2. Add renewable tech
By introducing smart technology that can keep track of the energy your office or workspace consumes, you can see exactly how much energy is being wasted. This can then give you the numbers to aim for and help you to trial ideas to reduce your output.
Energy monitoring systems are one type of tech that can prove to be a real investment. These can show you in real time how much is being consumed.
Create a green ethos
By making an eco-friendly ethos part of your everyday operations, your employees will follow suit. Getting everyone into the habit of turning lights off when not in use, popping paper into the recycling bin, and ensuring that you are a paperless office are some easy and quick updates that can go a long way.
Switch up your lighting
Making the switch from traditional to LED lighting is another energy efficient update. An LED bulb will use just 9 Watts, compared to a standard bulb’s 60 Watts, plus an LED bulb lasts for 23,000 hours longer than a typical bulb. When your current light bulbs run out, it’s worth making a note and adding LED ones in their place.
Which of these methods have you already introduced in your office?
