Here at JC Atkinson we believe that having a real green agenda in running a business is a balancing act between: a desire to reduce harm to the planet; solutions that are commercially viable; and attracting green consumers. Being green is a necessity for us. First and foremost, it’s part of our company’s mission and we want to be pioneering. And, while it may be altruistic, it’s important because we believe it matters. We also believe that you don’t have to sacrifice profit to care, which is why we have come up with our top tips for being a lean, green, business machine.
1. Use your savings and waste to offset more expensive green supplies and processes.
For example: whilst we use water based polish on our products, this is not strictly cost effective compared to the solvent based polish which retails for half the cost . But because we have invested in an automated spray line the resulting savings in production cost balances one another out. The same can be said for our wood procurement, we choose to use Forest Stewardship Council accredited wood for the majority of our production, this endorsement proves it is from a well managed sustainable forest. It is more expensive but again this is offset by us utilising our wood waste on site, to generate our own heat and power, thus saving costs.
2. Be innovative in the ‘green’ market
Be aware of customer demand for alternative greener options. For instance our new wool coffins, developed in partnership with Hainsworth have certainly helped us to gain new accounts and extend our market share. The wool coffins look contemporary and “green”, the felted wool outside is supported on a strong, recycled cardboard frame and they are lined inside with organic cotton. All made in the UK, using British wool, all biodegradable and sustainable. Green consumers and enthusiast sites have gone mad for them. It also sparked a bit of a media frenzy, which meant loads of free publicity.
3. Add credibility to your business by creating partnerships with ‘environmental’ companies and authorities.
Such as how we have official certification from the Forest Stewardship Council for the majority of the wood used to make our coffins. we also won the Sunday Times Best Green Company Award 2008.
4. Make your office or factory self-sufficient and use greener equipment.
I’m sure you would have heard it all before: switch to green electricity; recycle your office waste paper; don’t print out emails if it’s not absolutely essential; buy greener computers - which, by the way, you can check out at the Gooshing UK website, a venture run by the Ethical Company Organisation. That’s all very good to do and every bit counts, but lets face it, they’re very minor things to improve around the workplace to help the environment, and they can often cost you as a business. You want to think big. If you have a factory then make it self-sufficient like we did and invest money to reap big rewards.
We wanted to be unbeatable in leading the environmental way in coffin manufacturing, by having the first low carbon technology coffin making factory. To do this we: reduced our electricity consumption by installing energy efficient equipment; and installed our own combined heat and power generator. This burns our waste wood to supply all our electricity requirements and the hot water needed for our automated heating tunnel. All access electricity we generate is sold to the National Grid.
5. Deliver it the ‘green’ way and make money whilst you’re at it.
If you use a lot of vehicles to deliver goods then consider converting them to LPG Gas vehicles. This will improve your fuel expenditure and emissions from LPG cars are reduced owing to the gas’s low carbon content. Why not also plan your logistics so that vehicles can also pick up stock from their delivery destination, or earn extra revenue picking up items on behalf of other companies. For more information on the best green vehicles visit www.whatgreencar.com
If you have some other tips on being green and staying profitable please let us know.
Julian
