Our voice of business this month is: Andreas Hohmann, Managing Director of Total Carbide.
Every business will tell you that they are committed to the environment but for us it is at the heart of everything we do.
Our sustainability policy not only ensures our activities are carried out in conformance with the relevant legislation and industry standards but sets targets such as being net zero by 2030, a big commitment for an energy intensive industry.
We are constantly striving to cut our energy consumption for sintering and machining and have optimised the use of our furnace, for example, by recycling hot air within our facility. Helped by a grant from Low Carbon Workspaces, this initiative reduces our carbon footprint and saves £2,000 a month on heating costs during the winter.
At Westcott Venture Park we have solar panels installed and 30 per cent of the electricity we use is generated onsite. The remainder is 100 per cent green energy making us carbon neutral in fuelling the operation of our manufacturing facility while we use LED lighting throughout the factory.
Many of our suppliers are local to us which helps slash fuel consumption. For example, our oil supplier is 100 yards away and our packaging comes from a company 150 yards down the road. Our waste is also recycled by Bucks Recycling.
Customers such as the Satellite Applications Catapult can walk over to meet us and we are members of the Sustainable Business Network and previously won the Buckinghamshire SME Green Business Award.
Our staff also play a vital role in developing our environmental commitment and we engage with them regularly. We know young people entering the workplace don’t just look at what they earn but also whether the employer has a sustainability focus.
By completing sustainable projects such as the heat recycling scheme, we not only create a better workplace for our employees but create a sense of wellbeing in the company as they make a difference towards reducing our carbon footprint.
In future we are aiming to further reduce energy usage for sintering as we focus on high tech added value processes. Our sustainability strategy is to achieve ISO 14001 Environmental Management accreditation by 2026.
This internationally agreed and recognised standard will help us to identify, manage, monitor, and control our environmental processes helping us further reduce waste, for example, as well as cutting costs, increasing customer appeal and boosting our reputation.
We are well on our way to achieving that net zero goal, but it won’t stop there. We will continue to develop our environmental and sustainability goals to ensure we can be a great example of what can be achieved in a very short time.
