Green Office Week day 2 focuses on Transport in the UK sustainability drive
Written by Mark Sait
Posted on May 14, 2013
Day Two of Green Office Week turns the spotlight on Transport as part of the initiative to raise awareness and activity around the increasingly pressing issue of sustainability.
Thanks to office supplies specialist Avery, Green Office Week celebrates its fifth birthday and we have big respect for the company that has helped to drive growth in understanding with its yearly initiative – and beyond. We shared thoughts on the first day’s initiative, which is close to our vision and strategies to help companies and consumers save money and cut carbon emissions but wanted to add a few ideas around “transport”. The tips from Avery are, as always achievable and sound.
Tip 1: Avoid the morning rush hour and help reduce traffic on the roads. Try to work from home one day a month.
Tip 2: Save cash and make friends – find someone who lives close by or who is going to the same meeting as you to car share tomorrow. Write a travel policy which specifies rail travel where possible. Travelling to Europe by train typically saves time, money and carbon emissions!
Tip 3: Research how to set up conference calls – they’re a lot easier than you think and you’ll save heaps of time in the car! Skype is a free service that takes minutes to set up and allows you to make calls and video calls to fellow users
Tip 4: Opt for a cycle courier rather than your man with a van or choose a courier offering alternative energy or low carbon services
Tip 5: Find out if your city has a ‘Bike’ scheme – more fun than the gym! Explore whether your company can offer tax-free incentives to staff by purchasing bicycles through payroll.
At SaveMoneyCutCarbon, we are very aware that our business is quite intense in the way that it harnesses transport to do its job and so we try to do everything we can to reduce our carbon footprint, from ensuring our vehicles are the most efficient, are well-maintained and used only when absolutely necessary. We also contribute to rain-forest renewal projects to offset our carbon emissions but perhaps most important, we decided to develop our own distribution system and ensure that it worked in the most efficient way.
In this way, we minimise the impact on the environment because we always deliver direct and try to schedule these deliveries so that we do not make similar trips twice or three times. We also avoid the “depot shuffle” where a product can be moved several times to different delivery company depots on its journey to the buyer. We also take the idea outside of work and several of us use bikes for leisure and local journeys. It’s a small gesture but it keeps us healthy and makes a difference. Green Office Week has a different focus for each of the five working days. Tomorrow’s theme is “Waste” with Thursday (16th) looking at “Purchasing” and then “Innovation” on Friday (17th) Avery asks every person working in UK offices to become “a true green champion” by taking the Green Office Week daily themes and making them work each day, every week of the year. We heartily second that. Every company can invest in a range of products, from taps and tap aerators to eco showerheads, and from lighting to heating/ventilation (HVAC) and better boiler management. We’ll continue to write about different ways to cut carbon and save money, with the solutions paying for themselves within a very short time, over the next few days.
If you have any questions or want to find out more about our money saving, carbon cutting solutions, just contact us or call us on 0845 123 5464.