Sheetmetal fabrication company Alpha Manufacturing is on track to exceed this year’s stringent environmental targets.
Having achieved the ISO 14001 certificate for environmental management systems through implementing robust systems, Alpha’s strategy consists of three key areas: reduction of electricity and energy consumption, reduction of general waste produced and therefore waste to landfill, and increase recycling waste rate.
This year Alpha has worked on reducing its consumption of electricity by nearly half a million kWh’s, through a project to convert all lighting on premises to CEMA LED lighting. This has resulted in the company already beating its yearly kWh electricity target by over 13%.
Having switched to three bailers and one mini-compactor to decrease the amount of waste that goes to landfill, the company has now reduced its carbon footprint by 75%, the equivalent of 150 tonnes a year.
Alpha is now classed as a ‘zero to landfill’ company, working with leading waste management company Veolia, which stopped using landfill around 18 months ago, as its waste is now processed into Reuse Derived Fuel (RDF). Alpha was keen to use the RDF process as it replaces fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil, using filtration to produce as much lower CO2 than regular methods, meaning it is cleaner and less harmful to the environment.
The bailers are used to mass recycle Alpha’s waste materials such as all cardboard and plastic. The implementation of this equipment, along with building a workplace culture around reusing and recycling, has meant that Alpha is on track to beat its target of 55 tonnes of recycling by the end of 2021.
With a project under-way to switch to solar power in the next four years, this significant investment will result in the Alpha facility installing 1960 roof-mounted solar panels. This will hopefully allow the facility to be entirely self-sufficient in its energy usage within six years.
Alpha managing director Paul Clews said: “As a 24/7 capacity company, we knew we needed to modernise our systems and future-proof the business as well as contributing towards a more sustainable environment.
“These initiatives across three strategic areas, have meant that in 2021, we are already well ahead of schedule in the delivery of our environmental goals - in some areas, we’re already well ahead. We fully expect to have exceeded targets by the end of this year. This will also have a big impact on the five-year plan, making us one of the most ‘green manufacturers’ in the industry.”
Alpha Manufacturing
www.alphamanufacturing.co.uk
