6 Gas Detection - Focus on ION Science ION SCIENCE – WHERE SUSTAINABILITY IS EVERYTHING
The new ION Science R&D technology centre will complement the sustainably built, technologically advanced, eco-friendly design of its main building, the Hive.
Leading on sustainability is a popular aspiration for many businesses, but at ION Science, environmental protection was part of the company’s identity long before anthropogenic climate change was widely accepted. In the following article we explore the ways in which the company has built sustainability into everything it does, and how the benefi ts extend beyond environmental protection.
environment, ION Science has a keen understanding of the relationship between gases and climate change, but sustainability is more than just reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Initiatives in energy effi ciency, recycling, waste reduction and water optimisation all help improve the environmental and fi nancial sustainability of a business, but there are many other, less obvious, advantages.
W
ith a 34-year history in developing gas sensing technologies that help protect worker safety and the
Doing the right thing
ION Science fi rmly believes that it is every company’s duty to continuously seek ways to minimise environmental impact. For this reason, ION Science’s publicly stated vision has always been ‘To protect lives and preserve the environment’. Having established this as the company’s vision, everything that it does, and all the decisions that it makes, have to be aligned with this concept.
Underlining the importance of sustainability to its business, a recent survey of ION Science customers revealed an overwhelming 65.9% of them confi rming that sustainability matters to them when making purchase decisions.
Implementing sustainability
Start from the top. If the MD or CEO is not on board, there is little hope that staff will follow suit. Instead, they will assume that their work priorities lie elsewhere. So, at ION Science, sustainability starts with Duncan Johns, the Managing Director. Duncan fi rmly believes that a business must perform highly in all areas of ESG (Environment, Social & Governance), partly because people want to work for a business that is doing something worthwhile,
which, for ION Science, means protecting lives and preserving the environment. However, people also want their company to play its part, through its own operations, so that is also where ION delivers the E in ESG. More on that below.
Social factors include the way that ION treats its staff, including wages, workplace environment, wellbeing, skills, training & development, equality, diversity and inclusion. They also include suppliers and customers, as well as the local communities within which ION operates.
Governance is also vitally important, because staff have to know that the business is being managed effectively, and with honesty and integrity. Business objectives have to be clear and consistent, and staff need to be confi dent that the company is able to deliver on the promises that it makes to all stakeholders.
One of the most effective ways to implement sustainability, is to create company facilities that are demonstrably environmentally friendly, and this is an area in which ION Science has made remarkable progress. Visitors to the ION Science UK head offi ce and manufacturing facility in Fowlmere frequently express awe and admiration for the workspace that has been created.
In 2017, ION Science designed and built a sustainable, state of the art, purpose-built £4.5 million facility to meet ambitious global growth plans. Known as ‘The Hive’ the new facility embodies many of the characteristics of a beehive; providing a safe, pleasant, environmentally friendly workplace for a community of workers. Duncan Johns says: “We particularly liked the beehive theme when our new buildings were being designed. Bees work collaboratively for the greater good; they enhance the local environment through pollination and biodiversity; they use natural materials to construct parts of the hive; they employ smart methods of communication, and they even manage climate control within the hive.”
Featuring a technologically advanced and eco-friendly design, the Hive was specially constructed to achieve the highest possible hygiene, quality and environmental standards. In addition to the provision of a fantastic working environment with well-equipped break-out spaces, the Hive also features landscaped gardens and recreational areas for staff and visitors to enjoy.
Providing more light assembly, research and offi ce space, the work environment boasts a range of exciting design features, including:
• Ground source heat pump which extracts heat from the ground via bore holes un-derneath the car park and provides heating and hot water for the building without burning fossil fuels
• Modular access fl ooring which provides fl exibility in the distribution of building ser-vices and building layout
ION Science car park with electric vehicle chargers for staff and visitors.
• Building design which maximises natural daylight using large windows, doors and roofl ights
IET ANNUAL BUYERS’ GUIDE 2023/24
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