The Easter Bush team chose to explore ways to be more resource efficient in their 2018 Sustainability Awards Gold project. This included avoiding the use of 5,224 cardboard boxes.

Consolidated delivery from Office Depot

Highlights

• Aim to reduce plastic cups to over 80% in the next year
• Campus Stores group worked with Procurement and Users to improve consolidated orders and work with suppliers to reduce good associated packaging. Reuse packaging where possible (eg: paper packaging reused for animal bedding)
• Installation of Hand Driers in toilets in order to reduce paper towel usage
• Setting up of a stationery store in Vet School

Working closely with Procurement

The Campus Sustainability Team worked closely with the Campus Procurement team to reduce packaging across the campus. This project commenced in 2014 and has slowly expanded on a year on year basis in order to incorporate a variety of initiatives which seek to reduce-re-use-recycle packaging across the campus.

Step change

In order to generate campus-wide success, the project required a “step change” in the structure and day-to-day operations of procurement on the Easter Bush Campus. In particular, how the structure and processes focus on the use of e-procurement tools to aid the Purchasing & Stores team to considerably reduce the volume of goods-associated packaging coming onto the Campus. In addition to training at induction for new staff, mandatory training sessions for Sciquest and estores take place on a regular basis in order to ensure that the messages are getting through to appropriate staff.

Complementary waste reduction initiatives

Working alongside the Campus and Stores Department, the Sustainability Committee have undertaken a number of separate recycling initiatives which have complemented the work to further reduce packaging. The Committee has tried to ensure that separate initiatives complement each other, for example:

• reducing the use of plastic cups on the campus, undertaking a business case to procure a polystyrene chipper
• working with research study group leasers/suppliers to re-use packaging
• seeking to reduce paper towel use through education (via poster campaign)
• investing in hand dryers throughout the campus.

Find out more about resource efficiency Find out more about buying responsibly

Find out more about the Sustainability Awards

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‘Reduce-Reuse-Recycle Packaging Project’ with Easter Bush Campus Sustainability / Social Responsibility and Sustainability by blogadmin is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution CC BY 3.0