Any views expressed within media held on this service are those of the contributors, should not be taken as approved or endorsed by the University, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University in respect of any particular issue.

‘Reduce-Reuse-Recycle Packaging Project’ with Easter Bush Campus Sustainability

Easter Bush Sustainability Awards Gold project banner

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

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.

 

Type of waste avoidance Quantity
Cardboard boxes avoided 5,224
Polystyrene avoided 848
Courier packs avoided 285
Polystyrene recycled 362
Recycled packaging orders 1,452
Internal deliveries from stores 640

 

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

Find out more about the Sustainability Awards

Leave a reply

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>

css.php

Report this page

To report inappropriate content on this page, please use the form below. Upon receiving your report, we will be in touch as per the Take Down Policy of the service.

Please note that personal data collected through this form is used and stored for the purposes of processing this report and communication with you.

If you are unable to report a concern about content via this form please contact the Service Owner.

Please enter an email address you wish to be contacted on. Please describe the unacceptable content in sufficient detail to allow us to locate it, and why you consider it to be unacceptable.
By submitting this report, you accept that it is accurate and that fraudulent or nuisance complaints may result in action by the University.

  Cancel