HOTELS & HOSPITALITY
ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL HOME STRETCH
When Manchester-based multi-use creative arts centre, HOME, announced plans to eliminate single use plastic by 2020, they turned to Robert Scott to support its sustainability strategy.
Since opening the doors to its 6,200m2 venue on
Manchester city centre’s First Street in 2015, HOME has welcomed more than one million visitors every year to enjoy a unique combination of international theatre, art and film, and exceptional community and creative learning initiatives, as well as contemporary meeting and event spaces.
In 2018, HOME announced plans to eliminate single use plastic from the building by 2020 as part of its sustainability policy and practice and is an active supporter of Manchester’s Zero Carbon strategies.
It is the first arts organisation in the world to have all staff trained in carbon literacy, procures green electricity and has installed beehives on the roof to encourage biodiversity.
Debbie Bell, Building and Environmental Manager at HOME, explained: “As an organisation we’re working hard to reduce our environmental impact and improve our performance where possible. As part of our sustainability strategy, we reviewed our cleaning practices and worked with the team on site as well as with suppliers to see where single-use plastic could be eliminated from the daily cleaning regime.
“We have a team of 17 in-house operational cleaning staff. As part of induction training all staff complete carbon literacy training and we have full buy-in from the team on our sustainable policy and practices. For example, our cleaning team decided to stop using plastic bin liners, instead opting to regularly clean waste disposal units to eliminate single-use plastic liners.”
Debbie and her team were looking at other ways to reduce single-use plastic waste and turned their attention to cleaning products and the bottles they are supplied in.
She continued: “Earlier this year, our cleaning distributor DEB Disposables provided us with samples of the Toucan Eco bio-cleaning solution to test on site. The response from staff was overwhelming. As part of our sustainability strategy, we reviewed our cleaning practices and worked with the team on site as well as with suppliers to see where single-use plastic could be eliminated from the daily cleaning regime.”
Green cleaning with Toucan Eco In April 2019, HOME took delivery of Toucan Eco Active, designed for use in medium-sized facilities. The unit is able to make 10 litres of disinfectant multi-surface cleaner that kills 99.999% of bacteria from just water, salt and an electrochemical reaction. The system uses salt mixed with water to make a supersaturated brine solution.
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The 10-litre tank is then filled with tap water – either by hand or plumbed in – and 30ml dose of brine water added for activation. The unit is switched on and activation takes around 15 minutes.
At HOME, the unit was fitted near a water source for ease of use for staff and has streamlined their daily cleaning regime significantly. The solution is used to clean all public areas such as washrooms, gallery and event spaces, offices and staff rooms, excluding catering facilities which are managed independently. The team is also trialling the product as a deodoriser for seating in cinema rooms.
“Once the solution has been activated, staff fill the trigger spray bottles with solution, which is applied with reusable microfibre products so there’s no wastage of disposable cloths or mop heads and pads. We also reuse the container for salt delivery so there’s no unnecessary waste there,” Debbie explained.
On average, HOME has removed around 40 single-use plastic bottles from its monthly cleaning regime and makes a monthly saving of £100 from chemical products it no longer requires.
“We’re extremely pleased with the performance of Toucan Eco and the savings it has delivered, both in reducing single-use plastic waste and the need for harmful chemicals,” Debbie said.
“By changing our waste strategy, we’ve seen a significant reduction in plastic waste both back and front of house and are well on the way to meeting our 2020 target. We’re extremely pleased with the performance of Toucan Eco and the savings it has delivered, both in reducing single- use plastic waste and the need for harmful chemicals,” Debbie concluded.
www.robert-scott.co.uk/ twitter.com/TomorrowsFM
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