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Sims Group UK Limited sets course for a low carbon future
14/Sep/2010
Sims Group UK Limited - which incorporates Sims Metal Management and Sims Recycling Solutions - has become the first specialist metals and electronics recycling company in the UK to be awarded the Carbon Trust Standard. The award was made after the company took action to manage and reduce its carbon emissions across all of its UK operations.
The Carbon Trust Standard is the world’s first award that recognises organisations for genuine carbon reduction. Based on a rigorous, independent assessment, it certifies that organisations have measured, managed and reduced their carbon emissions across their own operations, and are committed to reducing them year on year.
Securely data wiping PCs at the Sims Recycling Solutions Dumfries ICT Asset Recovery Centre
Sims Group UK Limited was awarded the Carbon Trust Standard after
reducing its carbon emissions by almost 2% between January 2007 and
December 20091 despite having expanded its operations during
the same period. The reduction amounted to the equivalent of 550 tonnes
of carbon emissions. Carbon management measures taken included:
installing a building management system at the company’s Dumfries electronics recycling facility;
installing high efficiency motors at its dense media recycling plant at
Long Marston, Warwickshire and developing ‘energy champions’ at each
site.
Graham Davy, CEO, Sims Group UK Limited said: “We’re proud to be the
first specialist metals and electronics recycling company in the UK to
achieve the Carbon Trust Standard. It is a great way of showing that we
are on the front foot when it comes
to carbon management best practices. It also gives us an opportunity to
communicate our environmental credentials with integrity to those that
matter.
“Cutting carbon is a priority for us as a business and delivers tangible
bottom-line benefits. We have already cut our carbon emissions by 550
tonnes as part of the initiative and are committed to making further
reductions in the future. Going through the assessment process helped us
not only to quantify our carbon footprint, but also to benchmark our
performance and identify areas for improvement. This has brought
tangible and significant cost savings across our operations. In the
current climate it is essential that we remain competitive, and the
Carbon Trust Standard is another way we can stay ahead of the
competition.”
Harry Morrison of The Carbon Trust Standard Company said: “We congratulate Sims Group UK Limited on their certification. Carbon is a complex issue so most people need shorthand to indicate whether a company is doing the right thing. Achieving the Standard allows organisations to talk with integrity about the serious and credible steps it has taken to reduce its carbon emissions.”
The company is now looking at ways to further reduce its carbon footprint through maximising logistics efficiency, increasing employee involvement and investigating the possibility of wind turbine power generation.
1 Comparing carbon footprint data from financial year 2009, ending in December, to the average of the previous two financial years.