JUNE 2019 COVER STORY
that don’t prioritise sustainability will suff er – the
consumer will make a choice. It’s not just who they
want to buy from; it’s who they want to work for.
Second Nature isn’t just an environmental project,
although that is obviously very important. It’s
about how we do business. For us, sustainability is
about people management, day-to-day operation
and harnessing our workforce to deliver a vision.”
The tide is changing
Fortunately, companies like Ibstock and Cranswick
are no longer in the minority. A recent Make
UK report, Manufacturing: stepping up to the
sustainability challenge, examined sustainability
progress in the industry. It found that, despite
the challenge of Brexit, 50% of manufacturers
are making headway with their sustainability
programmes with 71% of those who implemented
environmentally friendly processes seeing a
reduction in their costs.
Energy-saving strategies remain the most
popular form of sustainability, according to the
report. Energy saving is the most typical fi rst step
for businesses to take because the cost effi ciencies
are easily quantifi able. Strategies put in place
include on-site battery storage, the installation
of on-site renewable heat systems and on-site
renewable power generation.
Nearly a fi fth of companies are going much
further, with imaginative energy effi ciency projects
such as demand side response, which involves
turning down equipment at peak times.
Make UK’s survey also reiterated Cranswick’s
approach to introducing a company-wide
sustainability focus. The businesses which
were most successful in driving sustainability
98%
of the raw materials
used at Ibstock’s brick
factory in Leicester
(above) are sourced
in the UK
Tips for improving on-site waste management
Andrew Sawers, director of waste management and
recycling fi rm Chloros Environmental, explains how
manufacturers can cut down on their waste.
Commercial and industrial waste accounts for 48 million
tonnes per annum in the UK alone, so getting a foothold on
these numbers should be a priority for any manufacturer.
With every manufacturing process comes undesirable collateral
output. What’s important, however, is how this collateral output, or
waste, is handled and managed, with many manufacturers oblivious
to the options available to them:
Transform waste into profi t
Waste is often seen as a cost burden, but fi rms are constantly
coming up with new and innovative ways to manage their waste
streams, which actually saves money or even turns a profi t.
Savvy businesses have learnt that productively using waste
instead of throwing it away can cut costs by reducing disposal
fees, while some companies have taken it even further by opening
up additional revenue streams through by-product sales. These
include selling on the waste to companies who could fi nd a use
and environmental improvements adopted a
boardroom to shopfl oor approach to promoting
change, ensuring they took the whole of the
workforce with them on the sustainability
journey, making the environment at the heart
of their business.
Brexit, however, has the potential to disrupt
this. Many of the UK’s environmental laws were
developed by the EU, and a new framework is now
being developed to manage England’s environment
over the long-term. Scotland and Wales have
their own plans. For manufacturers, the future
governance process can seem abstract, but it
will set the boundaries within which they will be
expected to operate long into the future.
People now realise the dangers the planet is
facing from human activity, meaning companies
are under increasing scrutiny to improve their
sustainability. As the companies featured in this
article prove, making a diff erence doesn’t have to
be expensive or diffi cult to implement – it’s just
important that you do something.
for it, recycling parts of the waste that can be
reused or manufacturing a secondary product
using materials found in the waste, gaining an
advantage over industry competitors.
Pinpoint where the waste comes from
As much as manufacturers try to minimise waste, it is inevitable
that a certain amount of material will still be left behind once
the product goes out the door. Incorporating an in-house
recycling programme is one of the easiest ways to improve waste
management techniques. A key starting point is determining which
stations are creating the bulk of waste and assessing how it can be
limited or controlled.
If a manufacturer does not have the in-house capabilities to
re-process used materials or by-products, they should look to
partner with a fellow business, as not only will this help both
businesses reduce waste, teamwork also helps identify repeated
waste streams.
The addition of on-site processing equipment, for example
compaction equipment, can help maximise the value of your waste,
while creating a sustainable waste management solution.
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