ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS
Hamish White, plant manager at door manufacturer JELD- WEN’s Penrith factory, explores the key changes that are being actioned in support of the business’ global journey to Net Zero, and the lessons that can be learned for building operators on their own path to a greener future
W Going the extra green mile
hilst the main premise of going green may be for businesses to ensure legislative compliance and reduce energy cost, increasing attention
is being placed on corporate social responsibility (CSR) amid a growing onus on working with companies that do things the right way.
Although this can, of course, mean an initial injection of investment and resource, it can also pay dividends in the long run – helping businesses to increase profitability and remain competitive.
Sustainable investment is, of course, nothing new. Amid the escalating issues of climate change, pollution and natural resource scarcity, businesses have been well acquainted with the importance of making more environmentally conscious choices. It is only more recently though, that a ‘clean’ strategy has become imperative for long-term success. Principally, this can be attributed to a growing sense of urgency around the climate change challenge. As a result, today’s investors, stakeholders, customers and even employees are increasingly demanding that the businesses they choose to deal with are much more responsible. However, there is also a strong business case for being more sustainable in terms of the potential to drastically reduce energy costs. With the ongoing energy crisis becoming even more pertinent, the need for green is also critical, economically and operationally. And so, the question begs – what steps can building operators take in terms of ramping up their efforts to reduce their carbon impact while still remaining competitive?
Fuel for thought
Whilst solar, wind and even micro-grids are often the preferred alternative to traditional energy sources, it’s important not to overlook the opportunity afforded by biomass. Generated from organic matter, biomass is
a renewable energy source, which - although releases carbon dioxide when burned – has considerably less impact than the use of fossil fuels. In fact, any excess supply of sustainably
sourced timber from the manufacturing process
can be used as fuel to minimise waste and ensure optimum circularity. By replacing the material used through replanting initiatives, it’s possible to ensure the CO2 emitted from biomass equals the amount absorbed over the months and years that the tree was growing, resulting in a carbon-neutral process. It is also widely known that electric is a much cleaner and more environmentally responsible alternative to diesel. Therefore, investing in new electric alternatives for key onsite equipment, such as forklift trucks, can be significant in reducing the carbon impact. Elsewhere, there are simpler but equally effectively ways to lower haulage emissions. At JELD-WEN, for example, the act of reducing wasted space on pallets travelling from just one site has helped us to maximise load capacity and take 14,000 miles of annual trailer journeys off the road each year, equating to a 14-tonne reduction in annual CO2 emissions.
Going full circle
As most building operators will know, a key part of any sustainable strategy is to carefully manage existing resources to ensure products and materials are kept in use for as long
as possible, to preserve raw materials and minimise waste.
For instance, at our Penrith Site, as part of our ambitious target to eliminate all landfill waste by 2024, we have already been able to achieve an 80 per cent waste reduction. A critical area in achieving this was a factory- wide focus on the increased circularity of materials, with every team member playing a role in everything from establishing waste sorting and identification to optimising processes and reducing transportation. For example, where we aren’t able to re-use waste timber at the factory, it is sent off site for recycling. This was the case for 2,740 tonnes of A-Grade wood waste last year, which ensured that it is filtered back into the supply chain and avoids landfill. Plastic recovery also remains a major focus in this, especially in terms of reducing single- use waste by swapping plastic packaging for cardboard. We’ve replaced all glazed door packaging for the highest volume of designs, with FSC-approved, recyclable cardboard. As a result, more than 104,000 doors per year no longer have plastic shrink-wrap applied, and 17 tonnes of plastic wrap has immediately been removed from the supply chain. In addition, we save 246,000 kWh per year in energy as the equipment used to heat seal the plastic is no longer needed - saving 57 tonnes in CO2 emissions.
Verify materials and suppliers
Finally, as well as committing to a more rigorous sustainability strategy within their own company, it’s important that building operators also take the time to review their existing partnerships, to ensure they are supporting businesses whose circular ambitions closely align with their own. A good starting point is to simply ask suppliers if they have internal decarbonisation targets, and how they are working to produce a more eco-efficient product. How advanced are they in their circular designs? What is the carbon trail of their products and operations? Holding suppliers responsible will ensure that collectively, everyone is working towards the same green goal.
A sustainable stance
Inherently, the sustainable transition can be complex and require significant time and resource – but it is an inevitable, and hugely beneficial one. Besides improving brand reputation and corporate image, a progressive substantial stance can help businesses cut costs and ensure they have a future-proofed strategy in place. Plus, as would-be investors and stakeholders increasingly choose suppliers that can match their own green credentials, it can even help open new business opportunities too.
26 BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER JULY 2023 Read the latest at:
www.bsee.co.uk
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