Jesse Lawrence
The world is very aware of Here, Kelly Friel from industrial tools retailer Zoro explains how to cut warehouse costs and help the environment with some achievable operational changes.
In 2019, finding ways to make the way your business functions more eco-friendly has become more important than ever. But aside from saving the planet, making some changes to your warehouse operations can also cut costs and give your brand image a great boost. In this article, I’ll be outlining some green adaptations you can implement in your warehouse to reduce costs and become more environmentally friendly.
From forklifts to lifting platforms, warehouse operations can require a lot of vehicles and machinery to carry out tasks safely and effectively. But, running a large number of these machines can take a lot of fuel and your company’s carbon footprint can become inflated. Swapping to electric vehicles eliminates the harmful emissions released from your usual gas-powered machinery, which helps the environment and even the health of your staff. This will also cost you less in the long run, since the power needed for electric vehicles costs significantly less than their fossil fuel equivalents (British Gas).
Investing in more energy efficient lighting is also a great way to cut down on costs and help the environment. Consider swapping your usual fluorescent lighting, which is currently in the process of being phased out, for LEDs, which are more efficient and cost effective. This is because LEDs create directional light, which means that, unlike their fluorescent alternatives, LEDs can focus their light in a specific direction rather than all directions.
LEDs can also convert energy more efficiently than traditional light sources, which convert a high percentage of their energy to heat. Alternatively, LEDs convert most of their energy into light alone, so are more environmentally friendly and cost effective in the long run.
Your warehouse can produce a lot of waste, some of which, such as pallets, crates and cardboard, can actually be recycled. I’d recommend reviewing your waste production and implementing a reuse and recycle initiative to reduce the amount of waste you’re sending to landfill.
Around 22% of traders have admitted to burning their waste rather than recycling or disposing of it correctly, according to research conducted by Recycling Waste World. I’d highly suggest you avoid doing this, as the gases and emissions released from burning waste can cause some serious damage to the planet.
If you produce products with a lot of packaging, it would also be a good idea to consider swapping the wrapping with more environmentally friendly, biodegradable materials, like paper or carboard. You can now even get plastics that are biodegradable because they’re made from natural fibres and are a much more environmentally friendly alternative to traditional plastics.
By implementing these three green changes, you can cut warehouse costs and save the planet as a result!
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