Envirowise offers ten top tips to help businesses boost profits by reducing waste
LONDON. 4th June 2004: Enough water to fill 1.5 million Olympic sized swimming pools , commercial waste equivalent to 1,900 Eiffel Towers and enough packaging to fill 22,000 jumbo jets. That is what UK businesses could save every year, starting on World Environment Day - 5th June. But it's not just about being green. By cutting out unnecessary waste, businesses could save as much as £3 billion per year - money that would go straight into profits.
Dr Martin Gibson, Director of Envirowise, the government funded programme, which offers free, confidential advice to businesses that want to reduce waste and boost profits, said: "The creation of unnecessary waste can have a huge impact on profitability. Instead of throwing money down the drain, businesses could build brighter futures, with savings realised through better environmental practices reinvested on staff and product development."
Every year, Envirowise helps thousands of businesses to identify unnecessary waste, reduce consumption of raw materials, and so convert expenditure into profit. Since its launch ten years ago, Envirowise has helped UK businesses to save more than £1 billion. To coincide with World Environment Day, it has created ten top tips - focusing on waste minimisation and resource efficiency to deliver a financial advantage to UK business:
1. Be vigilant, know what you are wasting: In UK manufacturing businesses, the average cost of waste can be as much as 4% of turnover. Proven waste minimisation initiatives can easily reduced this by 25%. Keeping track of waste and related costs is critical to realising these savings. (See Note 1)
2. Make use of skilled staff: Once the cause of waste has been identified the skill and knowledge of experienced staff will be critical to reducing it. What is more, tapping into people's skills and experience will enable you to make changes that stick.(See Note 2)
3. Remember - Good things come in small packages: Enough packaging waste is produced in the UK every year to fill 22,000 jumbo jets. Disposing of packaging waste is akin to paying for someone else's waste. Minimising the use or waste of packaging can deliver some quick savings. (See Note 3)
4. Measure for measure: Always measure and monitor the amount of water you use. Compare your water use each year. Also compare water use against production output for manufacturing companies and against staff numbers for service sectors. Remember 'if you don't measure it, you can't manage it'.
5. Flush out waste: Walk your site to see where water is being used. Construct a water balance sheet so that you can identify where water is being used and where it is wasted.
6. Stop the water works: Many companies can cut water costs by 30% based on some simple and inexpensive measures. Fit water minimising controls where possible, e.g. push taps, spray nozzles on hoses, low flush toilets, sensor urinal flushing controls, flow regulator/restrictors and cistern displacement devices.
7. Where do your products go? Research your product - its production and end of life options e.g. are hazardous materials used within the product, what happens to it at the end of its useful life and what up and coming legislation might affect it?
8. A product is for life…: Revisit your product design priorities. Over 80% of the environmental impact of a product is determined at the design stage, and could eventually result in escalating costs as end of product life regulations become stricter.
9. Smart design: Reduce production costs by creating products that require less material, energy or water during manufacture. Make reuse and recycling easier - re-using, remanufacturing and /or recycling all or part of the product can significantly reduce raw material use and divert material away from expensive landfill.
10. Ask the experts: Contact the Envirowise Advice Line on 0800 585 794 for free, confidential advice from Envirowise advisors or visit www.envirowise.gov.uk
Note 1: 30% of annual industrial water consumption (Total - 13.5 billion cubic metres - ONS).
Note 2: 25% of waste generated by commercial and industrial businesses (Total - 75 million tonnes)
Note 3: The benefits of greener business: AEA Technology and Cambridge Econometrics