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OTM Wins Environmental Awards
March 2008The 4th annual Leicester Environment Partnership event took place on Tuesday 11th March and included the announcement of the 2008 Green Life Awards in recognition of positive environmental work in Leicester.
The overall winner was Opus Trust Marketing Ltd for their Replacement Lighting & Reduction of Waste.
In addition, OTM were also category Winner for Best Contribution by a Business
More information is available at the Environment City Leicester website.
Extracts from our Application Document
Summary of project
We achieved ISO 14001 certification in 2006 and strive for continual improvement to reduce our environmental impacts. We have formal objective programmes within our Environmental Management System and in 2007 the objectives included the following projects:
Energy Saving:
Replacement of factory lighting with fittings that use less energy, are switched on only when required and provide a better working environment for staff. This project was the biggest element of our energy saving campaign for the year. Installation was completed towards the end of the year and results are just being seen; greater savings will be made during the coming months of this year when we can take advantage of natural daylight.
Waste Management:
Already achieving a high recycling rate and having significantly reduced waste to landfill, we initiated a project to move up the waste hierarchy. We specifically aimed to reduce the waste paper generated by our operational processes.
Description of project activity during 2007
Replacement lighting:
We consulted lighting specialists to quantify current usage and opportunities for saving energy in operational areas. We identified that greatest savings could be made by replacing fittings in two thirds of our factory. We targeted the areas that were lit by 400watt metal halide cold start lights (over 80 units) and had controls that were not easily accessible, which meant they were often left on 24/7. We invested over £36,000 in state-of-the art fittings which are controlled by light and motion sensors further reducing the energy consumption. At the same time we installed fittings with motion sensors in the staff canteen, toilets and surrounding corridors.
The Carbon Trust recognised the potential energy savings and granted an interest free loan for this project.
The new lights provide an improved level of lighting and better working environment for staff.
Reduction of Paper Waste:
End of runs and mis-prints generated the majority of the 200 tonnes of waste paper we sent for recycling in 2006. Our Operational Managers took up the challenge and worked with their teams to reduce this amount. Similarly, our IT Infrastructure Manager agreed to replace all printers and copiers with double sided printing as default. We received ideas from different departments as to how they could change their paperwork systems and also had pledges from individuals to reduce and reuse whenever possible.
Desk calendars, made from our out-of-date marketing materials, remind staff to reduce their use of paper and, to also promote energy saving, prompt them to “switch off”.
Although the formal programme has ended this objective is ongoing and continues to be monitored.
