Page 5 - st7_flip

sustainabletimes 05 www.binfo.co.uk
Offce Depot has introduced an e-billing system that is
expected to save a stack of paper as high as 15 double-
decker buses each month. The contract stationer is looking
forward to an 80% reduction in the 3.5 million paper
invoices it sends to its 200,000 UK customers annually.
This is the latest in a series of waste reduction initiatives
introduced by the company globally. In the US, it has started
delivering offce supplies in paper bags rather than cardboard
boxes padded with plastic pillows.
Over the next 12 months, the opt-in GreenerOffce
Delivery Service is expected to replace fve million cardboard
boxes weighing 4.5 million pounds with about 0.9 million
pounds of paper. Offce Depot claims that wood-based
resources saved are the equivalent of over 20,000 trees.
Juan Guerrero, Senior Vice President of Supply Chain for
Offce Depot, said: “Customer feedback on our new delivery
service has been exceptional. Many customers were excited by
the convenience the program offers – no boxes to open, no air
pillows to deal with and no cardboard to dispose of.”
A spokesman for Offce Depot in the UK said that there
were no plans to extend the scheme over here, but that the
company was considering the use of returnable tote boxes
for deliveries. It already uses Cargocycles for central London
deliveries, cutting its vehicle emissions in the area by 80%.
www.offcedepot.co.uk
Offce Depot saves paper
with new e-billing system
Data security and cost concerns are the
main obstacles to the greater re-use of
IT equipment, according to a study of
100 enterprises with more than 1000
employees by Vanson Bourne for IT re-use
charity Computer Aid International.
Only 14% of companies followed best practice by
sending all working computers for re-use and recycling
the remainder.
Of those that don’t send PCs for re-use, 63% cited
data protection concerns as a reason; 53% stated cost; and
24% suggested that contractual obligations to a leasing
company prevented them from doing so.
More than four out of 10 respondents (83%) said they
would re-use working equipment if factors such as data
protection and cost were addressed.
This represents a lost opportunity as PC turnover
remains high, with UK organisations on average replacing
base units every 3.7 years and monitors every 4 years.
www.computeraid.org greenAgenda…
New bridge a load
of old rubbish
The frst recycled thermoplastic road
bridge outside the USA has been built
byWelsh company Vertech Limited
across the River Tweed at Easter
Dawyck in Peeblesshire. Forming part
of the John BuchanWay, the 90-foot
road bridge is made from 50 tonnes of
waste plastic that won’t rust; requires
no painting or regular maintenance;
and is 100% recyclable.
The project was undertaken in
partnership with Dawyck Estates,
specialist bridge designer Cass Hayward
LLP, Cardiff University’s School of
Engineering, Rutgers University’s AAMIPP
Department and Axion International,
with support from theWelsh Assembly
Government.
In 2012, Vertech plans to open a
manufacturing facility in NorthWales
where it will make thermoplastic
composite materials that can be used by
the European construction sector instead
of plywood, MDF and laminates.
www.vertechcomposites.co.uk
CPD launches green
alternative to PET
and PLA
A new plant-based polymer that
requires less energy to produce and is
claimed to compost within weeks has
been developed by CPD, a supplier of
cleaning and hygiene products, and the
University of Sheffeld.
Floreon is claimed to have a number
of advantages over PET petroleum-based
plastics and conventional bio-based PLA
plastics:
l it requires 62% less energy to make
than rival products that need to be
heated to 280-300 degrees centigrade
during manufacturing;
l over 90% of Floreon comes from plant
materials with a patented PLA blend
made from 100% renewable corn;
l PLA is a better recycled material than
PET as quality does not decline during
recycling enabling it to be recycled into
virgin plastic; and
l Floreon biodegrades within just weeks,
even in home composting – not
just into very fne particles, but into
chemicals that exist in soil and can be
broken down by bacteria.
The frst product to be made from
Floreon is a prototype water bottle
created by Sebastian Conran Associates
(SCA). Floreon bottles are claimed to be
tougher, easier to process and slightly
more heat resistant than those made
from conventional PLA.
www.cpd-plc.co.uk
Streamlined
deliveries
The Premier Paper Group has taken
delivery of its frst pair of aerodynamically
designed ‘curving body’ trucks as part
of its commitment to reduce costs and
environmental impact. The 12 tonne DAF
LFs, supplied by Ryders, are ftted with
Bevan 21 bodies and are expected to
reduce fuel consumption by around 10%
with a corresponding reduction in carbon
emissions. Premier Paper expects to add
more of the trucks as older vehicles in its
96-strong feet are replaced.
Neopost has introduced
an ‘eco’ signature to
highlight the steps
it has taken to make
its products more
sustainable and to draw customers’ attention to products
that exceed market standards for energy-effciency and
CO2 emissions. By adopting an eco-design approach,
Neopost has slashed the amount of materials used to
make its Energy Star-certifed mailing products by 44%.
Packaging has been reduced by 7% and is now 100%
cardboard. In addition, Neopost runs a free cartridge
recycling service and has raised the recyclability of
machines to an average of 78%. Energy-effciency has
been enhanced with a sleep mode that cuts energy
consumption by up to 50%. www.neopost.co.uk
Sustainable
Editor’s Choice Award
Floreon