Environment policy
Green Building Store has an active environment policy - updated annually - which reports on the company's environmental performance and outlines strategies and targets for the year.
Policy statement
Green Building Store exists to promote sustainable and environment conscious alternatives to conventional building products. Sustainability is at the heart of what we do, however we recognise that our operations will inevitably have an impact on the local, regional and global environment.
To address this, Green Building Store seeks to continually improve its environmental performance by preventing pollution, increasing energy efficiency and minimising waste. Environmental regulations, laws and codes of practice will be regarded as setting the minimum standards of environmental performance.
In particular, Green Building Store aims to:
Product sustainability
• Carefully consider the environmental impacts of its product range at all stages of their lifecycle from manufacture to disposal.
• Offer products which demonstrate clear advantages in reduced environmental impact and increased sustainability and which minimise or eliminate potentially harmful effects on human inhabitants of buildings.
Environmental information
• Offer clear and informed advice to our customers on the environmental impact of all of the company’s product range.
• Make no unsubstantiated claims for environmental qualities or sustainability. Ensure that, as far as possible, all environmental information disseminated by the company is in line with the current state of knowledge.
Environmental impact
• Undertake all activities with the intention of reducing the company’s environmental impact as far as possible.
• Conserve energy in our office and manufacturing units and source electricity from renewable sources, where possible.
• Save water in all our operations, through installation of water-saving devices and other measures, where applicable.
• Endeavour to minimise waste in all our operations, by prevention of unnecessary waste, reuse of materials and recycling.
• Minimise the impact of transporting products and materials by exploring alternative technological and logistical options available, eg alternative fuels.
• Assess and monitor the environmental impact of suppliers and work with them to improve their environmental performance.
Environmental policy
• Ensure that all employees are kept informed of the company’s environment policy and of the environmental implications of their actions within the workplace. The company’s environmental aims and objectives are also communicated to Green Building Store’s customers, partners and suppliers.
• Green Building Store will review its environmental performance and compliance with all applicable laws and regulations annually and will set environmental targets and goals for the coming year. The Environmental Performance Review will be carried out in December of each year, with the next review taking place in December 2009.
Environmental Performance Report 2008
January – December 2008
Main activities
Manufacture of Ecoplus range of windows, doors and solar spaces
Nationwide supply of a range of leading edge sustainable building products
Number of sites and locations:
Office and four industrial units in Heath House Mill, Bolster Moor (leased from private landlords P Elliot & P Clark), West Yorkshire. (NB The fact that these are leased puts some limitations on Green Building Store’s control over unit infrastructure, electricity supply etc.)
Ownership: Green Building Store is wholly owned by Environmental Construction Products Ltd, Heath House Mill, Heath House Lane, Golcar, Huddersfield HD7 4JW.
Contact person: Chayley Collis, Environment Policy Coordinator
1) Energy
• The office at Heath House Mill in Bolster Moor has been refurbished to a high energy-efficient specification, working in collaboration with the landlord. Energy-saving features include: Green Building Store’s Ecoclad thermally efficient double-glazed windows and doors; Thermafleece sheeps’ wool insulation in the loft space; and energy-efficient gas condensing boiler.
• As part of former mill complex, the window production unit (Unit 6) was poorly insulated – contributing to higher gas costs. During 2008 Green Building Store installed secondary glazing over the Mill windows (covering windows with polythene on frames) – in response to an employee-led initiative to develop a solution to the problem. This has resulted in a 15% reduction in energy use for space heating in 2008.
• Electricity use has risen in the office in 2008.
The main reason for this increase has been:
- Increase in number of staff using the same area and resulting increased computer use.
- Remote access use of computers overnight and at weekends – which requires leaving computers on for individuals to access.
• Electricity use has also risen in the production unit – mainly for lighting – the reasons for which are not clear. Environment Policy Coordinator and Environment Rep to investigate.
• Electricity and gas use has increased in Paint Store in 2008 (Unit 4) due to increased use of space for other purposes – including glazing preparation.
• Computer monitors in the office now automatically ‘power down’ if not in use (after 5 minutes inactivity) thanks to an IT Department initiative.
• GBS has purchased a Smart Meter with which various appliances and fittings around the office have been tested to see which uses most energy. As a result, office lighting has been pinpointed as needing improvement as was using by far the greatest amount of energy.
• Information gathering on electricity/ gas usage has improved with consistent readings allowing us to monitor annual consumption figures.
Previous readings (Meltham Office):
| Office | 2005-6 | 2004-5 | 2003-4 | 2002-3 |
| Units (kWh) | 86572 | 6837 (est) | 6837 (est) | 5351 |
Heath House Mill
| Office | 2007 | 2008 | %(+/-) |
| Electricity(kWh) | 10,485 | 12,210 | +16% |
| Gas (m3) | 1619 | 1724 | +6% |
| Window production - Unit 6 | 2007 | 2008 | %(+/-) |
| Electricity(kWh) | 5197 | 7465 | +43% |
| Gas (m3) | 3359 | 2653 | -15% |
| Paint store & glazing - Unit 4) | 2007 | 2008 | %(+/-) |
| Electricity(kWh) | 806 | 957 | +18% |
| Gas (m3) | 88 | 286 | +225 |
Energy benchmarks
1) Office (Floor space = 150m2)
| Electricity consumption | 2007 | 2008 |
| kWh/m2/per annum | 70 | 81 |
Action Energy Office Good Practice Benchmark : 86 kWh/m2/p.a
Action Energy Office Typical Benchmark : 128 kWh/m2/per annum
| Gas consumption | 2007 | 2008 |
| kWh/m2/per annum | 119 | 127 |
Action Energy Good Practice Benchmark : 99 kWh/m2/per annum
Action Energy Typical Benchmark : 188 kWh/m2/per annum
2) Manufacturing unit (Floor space = approx 580m2)
| Unit total energy consumption | 2007 | 2008 |
| kWh/m2/per annum | 73 | 63 |
Assumptions
Gas 1m3 = 11.06 kWh
Source: ACTION Energy On-Line Benchmarking System for Office Systems
2) Water
• The ES4 4 litre siphon WC and Ifo Sign Universal dual flush WC have been installed at the Green Building Store office washrooms.
• Water-efficient taps are fitted throughout the office – in bathrooms and kitchen.
• A 6 litre per minute Aqualogic showerhead has been installed in staff shower room.
• Unfortunately, there are no water meters available to monitor water usage at the Heath House Mill site.
3) Waste
• Waste from the manufacturing unit is collected in skips from Kirklees Council. Kirklees Council is a Registered Waste Broker with the Environment Agency (Licence Number: YRI/445865 ). Registration was checked on the Environment Agency Public Register (www2.environment-agency.gov.uk/epr/) as at 05/01/09.
• Cardboard, glossy paper waste and polythene is now recycled through Why Waste? Waste exchange recycling and reuse scheme, in response to an employee-led initiative to develop a solution to the problem. Waste is collected every 2/3 months.
• Office paper is reused as fax/scrap paper (if only printed on one side) and then recycled using a Kirklees paper recycling collection service.
• Currently glazing unit waste at manufacturing unit is not recycled.
• Systems are in place to recycle redundant functioning computer equipment with Computer Aid International www.computer-aid.org
• Systems are in place to recycle mobile phones. Environmental Mobile Control Ltd Tel: 01283 516259 www.emc-recycle.com.
• Waste electronics waste is currently being stockpiled on site and, when we have enough to send, sent to: RID UK (Sheffield) www.weee-recycler.co.uk, Tel: 0114 243 3637
4) Transport
• Green Building Store has 5 vans for joint use between Green Building Store and Green Building Company. These are all currently diesel-powered.
• The company encourages the use of bicycles on company business and offers a bicycle mileage allowance of 20 pence per mile.
• Green Building Store is a member of the West Yorkshire Travel Plan Network (WYTPN). The Network enables us to assess travel options to our site – including public transport, car sharing, cycling etc. By joining the Network, Green Building Store has made a commitment to undertaking an annual survey of employees’ travel patterns. The 2008 Travel survey revealed: 9.5% of GBS staff cycle to work (compared with average figure of 1% for Kirklees); 19% of GBS staff car share (compared with average figure of 13% for Kirklees); but 61.9% of GBS staff surveyed drive alone (compared with average figure of 59% for Kirklees). Green Building Store is participating in car-share promotions for employees through WYPTN.
• The Heath House Mill office has adequate storage space for undercover bicycle storage and a shower to encourage employees to cycle to work.
5) Procurement
• The company has a policy of using 100 % recycled paper for all stationery requirements, including envelopes and promotional materials.
• The use of PVC is avoided in all marketing materials (eg laminated boards or signage) with polypropylene or recycled cardboard being used as a preferred alternative.
• Marketing materials are all printed at Seacourt – a specialist printing firm which uses a waterless printing system and vegetable inks. 100% recycled paper is used as standard.
• The company strives to ensure that all tea and coffee purchased for the office is fair trade and/or organic.
• Staff uniform –staff t-shirts are organic cotton and fair-trade. A fair-trade option was also sourced for promotional cotton bags.
6) Suppliers
• Green Building Store has a wide range of UK and European partners/ suppliers. Many of these are small-medium sized manufacturers of environmentally-sensitive building products.
• Before entering into a significant relationship with a new supplier, Green Building Store makes efforts to research the company’s environmental performance and practices. It does this using a variety of sources, including information databases such as Corporate Critic (from Ethical Consumer Research Association).
• A new supplier questionnaire was been developed to cover environment policy and health & safety issues. This will be sent in 2009 out to all major new and existing suppliers.
7) ) Supporting the Community
• Green Building Store Director Chris Herring has been a volunteer member of the Board of the AECB (Association for Environment Conscious Building www.aecb.net) for the past 13 years and is currently serving as National Chair. The AECB, also known as the sustainable building association, is a membership organisation which has been promoting sustainable construction issues since its inception in 1989. Its 1500 members range from individual professionals to large companies, active across a wide range of construction industry professionals. For the last 3 years the AECB has been particularly focussed on promoting best practice in low carbon design, particularly focussing on the German Passivhaus standard. Chris has been actively involved in supporting all of the AECB’s key initiatives working with other Board members and staff to make the AECB a strong, independent and sustainable voice at all levels in the construction industry.
• In the local community (Huddersfield and Kirklees) Green Building Store is making an active contribution to the environmental regeneration of the Colne Valley in which it is based. Chris Herring, Green Building Store Director has been a volunteer member of the Marsden & Slaithwaite Market Town Renaissance scheme ‘Town Team’ for the last 4+ years, which acts as a steering group working on and engaging the community in key regeneration projects in the upper Colne Valley. This scheme is a Yorkshire Forward- funded initiative supported by Kirklees Council to promote regeneration in the region. As part of this, Chris Herring has for the last four years been official ‘Project Champion’ for a project to develop a National Centre for Environmental Construction Skills (NCECS) - to be based in the Colne Valley, Huddersfield. It is anticipated that the project will be inaugurated in 2009, subject to final approval from Yorkshire Forward. Once developed, the training centre would spread knowledge and expertise about ‘best practice’ low carbon design and construction to a range of building professionals (including architects and building contractors) both regionally and nationally, thus potentially creating both local training opportunities and jobs. Chris is also supporting other regeneration schemes as part of the ‘Town Team’.
• In addition, in 2007/8 Green Building Store Director Bill Butcher has been working with Huddersfield University Architecture Department, lecturing on sustainable construction to postgraduate students and working with 2nd year students to increase awareness of low carbon building. Green Building Store Director Steve Slator is currently Chair of Valley Wind – a voluntary organisation which aims to develop a community-based wind farm co-operative within Kirklees.
• Green Building Store has supported local environmental and cultural events including: Huddersfield Green Fair (2007), Huddersfield Climate Change March (2007) and Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival (2008) – offering practical/ financial support eg printing posters etc, building services etc.
• The company has spoken on the subject of sustainable construction to local audiences including Kirklees Council, Yorkshire Quakers and at the Ecology Building Society AGM. The company’s press releases are regularly featured in the local news media (eg Huddersfield Examiner, Yorkshire Post, Look North) relating to sustainable construction issues. In 2008 Green Building Store was ‘Highly Commended’ in the Huddersfield Examiner Business Awards – Kirklees Council Green Award.
• Green Building Store has made donations to the charity WaterAid in 2006 and 2008, totalling £1395.80.
Performance against 2008 targets
1. Implement energy efficiency measures to:
a) Cut office electricity use by 2% - NO (Increase in number of staff sharing the office has increased the number of computers and printing and made this target unrealistic and difficult to achieve)
b) Complete installation of secondary glazing in Manufacturing Unit – YES (resulting in 15% reduction in space heating energy consumption)
2. Develop supplier questionnaire and start using by September 2008 YES (questionnaire has been developed but there has been a delay in sending them out)
3. Publicise at least 3 items on Why Waste? waste exchange forum
NO – this needs to be prioritised in 2009.
Environment strategy 2009
This section covers new initiatives/ measures being taken for 2009.
Energy
Energy efficiency measures for the office
Simple and cost-effective solution – remove 1 in 4 strip lights from the office to produce immediate reduction in energy consumption. To be achieved by June 2009. To explore other IT solutions for reducing energy consumption.
Electricity (lighting) consumption in manufacturing unit
Environment Policy Coordinator and Environment Rep to investigate increase in energy consumption in 2008 – with a view to reducing throughout 2009.
Waste
Participate in Why Waste? – Waste Exchange scheme
Publicise waste glazing/ sanitaryware as and when they become available. Priority for 2009.
Transport
Continued membership of West Yorkshire Travel Plan Network
As part of WYTPN, to include public transport information with directions to our office on our new-design website. To be completed by June 2009.
General
Undertake environmental audit
Approach Green Business Network to undertake an environmental audit covering: pollution prevention; waste management; water use; transport; energy use; and sustainable purchasing. To achieve by October 2009.
Targets 2009
1. Publicise at least one item on Why Waste? Waste exchange
2. Undertake environmental audit through Green Business Network
3. Alter the office lighting (removing 1 in 4 strip lights) to cut lighting energy use
4. Publicise public transport options in directions to office and on website