Smart buildings
NatWest is rolling out thermal imaging technology on smartphones, which shows employees where they are losing heat in their homes.
and sustainability, particularly looking at its historical estate, the supply chain will play a leading role. “Our supply chain is hugely important,” Wickham emphasises, adding that the group is now looking towards Scope 3 and its indirect emissions. “We’re currently working to understand the impacts of our supply chain,” he explains, “using a third-party organisation to help us benchmark our suppliers. That’s helping us work out almost organisation-specific action plans, where we can collaborate with that supplier to try and improve our own carbon impact.”
“We’re currently working to understand the impacts of our supply chain, using a third- party organisation to help us benchmark our suppliers.”
Allan Wickham, NatWest Group
Blott agrees on the importance of the supply chain: “It’s incredibly important, both in terms of existing supply chains and new innovations within them. We’re already lucky enough that our supply chain brings us regular innovations, and many of those we take into pilots.” Lloyds, for its part, holds a quarterly ‘Green Dragons’ Den’, where suppliers can pitch green ideas it can incorporate into its operations.
One of the big impact technologies here is thermal imaging of office and branch buildings and colleagues’ homes. Both Blott and Wickham exalt the benefits of tools like this. “There’s some fantastic opportunities around thermal imaging of buildings,” says Blott. “Actually understanding how efficient your building
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is and what’s happening allows you to tailor your interventions.”
Thermal imaging is also being used by workers at home. Wickham believes the pandemic and homeworking have resulted in employees understanding their carbon footprints much better. NatWest is rolling out smartphone technology that takes thermal images of the heating systems in colleagues’ homes, which shows them where they are losing heat. Then a specialist helps them reduce energy waste. A carbon calculator pilot was also used by 100 employees, allowing them to calculate their emissions by providing some basic billing and behavioural information. The project, which is now being rolled out to 30,000 of the bank’s workforce, resulted in an 8% cut in carbon emissions. Both Lloyds and NatWest have ambitious targets, in short, but each is confident of meeting them. New materials and technologies, coupled with new ways of working, will help them along. The focus is to cut emissions wherever possible, supported by sustainable power purchasing agreements and offsetting. “We know exactly what we need to do,” says Blott. “We’ve already purchased 100% renewable energy, and now as a group we have pledged to halve our energy consumption between now and 2030. They are broad high-level pledges underpinned by a rigorous plan of activity.” Banking is unique and its physical presence even more so. Customers might be lured by the latest technologies, the possibility of using ‘futuristic’ tools. But they’re equally likely to be attracted by the history, heritage and tradition of their chosen institution. This is true for banks’ branch networks too, but upkeeping buildings built for a bygone era is tough. These two banking giants hope to prove it’s not impossible. ●
Future Banking /
www.nsbanking.com
NatWest Group
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