Keeping the Office Green is Hard Work - top green tips

We mentioned on the last post that we did not think the paperless office exists, so how do we manage/control the use of all of this paper in our office?

The use of virgin and old growth forests for office paper is destroying many habitats and communities www.safetherainforest.org, so some of the measures we can take to have an active part in reducing the impact on these forests is by trying to adopt the following:

Purchase of paper

make sure that is has a high-recycled content (greater than 70%), totally chlorine-free during production, has an accredited environmental or green waste label

Paper saving techniques

ensure an efficient use of paper with double-sided photocopying and printing
use email and voicemail wherever possible
insist all staff are aware of 'green printing', i.e. make sure documents are as short as possible and only printed when necessary
have paper audits - look at recycled bins to assess how much waste is going into them. Try to have paper reduction targets

so simple: ensure staff are trained how to use the photocopier correctly to avoid mistakes!
have a space on your website so that reports and documents can be downloaded and viewed on screen
keep your database up to date - then you can email your latest offers and communications to your customers
For hardcopies print on both sides of the paper
use line spacing of no more than 1.5
lay out the document with the minimum amount of white space
avoid using varnishes when printing
if adhesive binding is used, ensure that it contains chlorinated organic compounds
label all of your printed documents with information about how it was produced

It is worth bearing in mind that it is thought that half of all office waste is paper-based, so the benefits to not just the environment, but also to your buhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifsiness by keeping yourhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif office green are quite evident. All of the above measures to cut the amount of paper you use are relatively inexpensive and can in fact actually save you money, whilst at the same time, you can take pride in the fact that your business is doing its bit for the environment.

Do forward this link to anyone who you think might be interested. There are awards and many hidden benefits to green businesses www.greenachiever.co.uk

Should the paper that you are required to keep for the statutory 7 year period start to pile up in unwanted parts of the office, then it is always worth considering sending the odd archive box away to be stored :

http://barretts-selfstorage.co.uk/business_storage.html

#DocumentArchivingRetrievalDestruction

Greener cities mean greener offices?

'It's important to have greenery in a city, not just because it looks nice But we can also save our #earth and #environment'. This was a tweet sent out on Twitter yesterday from India - http://www.greenleapdelhi.org.in/

The Queen's jubilee year project aims to plant 6 million trees across the UK. The project is being organised by the Woodland Trust http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk . We are all looking to maintain a greener lifestyle, organisations want to show that they understand what their Corporate Social Responsiblity (CSR) is. Having ethical values and showing that you are living in a sustainable manner is definitely still very much high on the agenda with individuals and businesses and this is international, not just in the UK.

The paperless office can demonstrate that all of the above values are being adhered to. Unfortunately however, it is our experience that the paperless office is more, or less a fallacy, if it does even exist at all. Should HMRC pay you a visit, then everything still has to be produced on paper for them to examine. Documents have to be kept for the statutory seven years and although there are options to use scanning services, many organisations still end up with many, many archive boxes full of paperwork that they are required to keep, littering up the workplace.

For as little as 5 pence per week, a box can be removed and securely stored at our premises, thus freeing up valuable working space. Not only does it remove clutter and create a tidy working environment, but it ensures that the data is kept in a remote fire-proof location, should any unforeseen disaster occur. Have a look at our archive page for further information about this very cost-effective service: http://www.barretts-selfstorage.co.uk/document_archiving.html

I wonder how much paper there is in 6 million trees?

Recycling is still the new Buzz Word

We have just added our recycling policy to our website and 'about time too' you might well say. Why has it taken us so long? The answer to that is, 'I don't really know'. I suppose it was sheer laziness. In reality, we have always had an in house recycling policy, we even set up a Recycling Centre on the Monument Business Park six or so years ago, when it was not fashionable to do so and there were certainly no grants around to help us. I have to say that it struggled too, mainly because most other businesses were not that interested in disposing of their waste in an ethical manner, not because they did not want to, but because it took up a lot of extra hours and manpower and they needed to concentrate on their core business. So what has changed?

Consumer awareness I think. All councils have a recycling centre and everyone is more aware that they have a responsiblity to be greener in their waste disposal. Hopefully this awareness now translates through to businesses too. Although I am sure that many of the smaller SMEs 'think' about it, as we did, and not too many actually commit anything to writing.

The reason that we have decided to devote more time to this came mainly from the influences of other businesses. Two of these are www.aspireoxford.co.uk where they not only work with recycling, but also help disavantaged people by giving them employment within their organisation and they operate a recycling service for businesses on the Monument Business Park and www.ethicalecoart.co.uk (see upcycled chair in picture rescued from landfill) whose mission it is to create works of art by upcycling through using all recycled products - what could be more sustainable and green? They are looking to work with any businesses who have waste that they might be able to use.

We are now looking at all of our suppliers to see how ethical and green their policies are and we hope that our customers are doing the same.

Barretts Storage Recycling Policy

As part of ongoing sustainability efforts, Barretts Storage will ensure wherever possible to recycle all paper, bottles, cans and furniture to work towards recycling and composting as much business waste from being landfilled.

The purpose of our recycling policy is to set up and maintain our commitment to sustainable stewardship through recycling, waste prevention, purchasing recycled content products and energy and water conservation.

When possible, Barretts Storage will place a preference on doing business with companies that demonstrate an excellence in sustainable operations.

Springtime has arrived with an Easter offer

It must be official now - we can announce that Spring has definitely arrived. With the warmer weather earlier in the week, it is quite noticeable that there is an audible increase in volume from the birds. Our site has fields and hedgerows on two sides and the activity from the feathered occupants has increased considerably over the past few weeks, they all seem to be spring cleaning their nesting areas. Even the red kites with their languorous circling and swooping overhead, seem to put more effort in. Those same hedgerows have green shoots and those persistent weeds are bursting out of their hiding places. Everything is demanding attention and activity.
The same can be said of our homes and workplace. There is nothing like an open window with some sun streaming through to spotlight piles of papers and boxes, not to mention the dust and cobwebs. With all the bank holidays looming, it is an ideal opportunity for a spring clean. Lots of the papers and boxes in those piles are needed and although not vital, need to be stored safely until required. This is why we have put together our special 'Spring/Easter Offer': - Pay for one month's storage, get one month free This gives you the opportunity to free up space, or temporarily store items, whilst an office or room is re-organised, ready to get back to some serious work and planning at the beginning of May - until the next bank holiday!

Bubblewrap's Total Versatility

Last week I wrote about preparing for winter somewhat tongue-in-cheek, little realising that a few days later we would be heading towards arctic conditions and a major freeze-up. The pipes in our tea room had frozen up over the weekend. The hot water tap was left on and as it thawed out with the heating on, burst out like a thermal spa all over the floor leaving a huge puddle in the middle of the carpet tiles. A very visible reminder that we should have lagged the pipes properly during the summer, which was on the 'to do' list, but somehow did not seem such a priority then and got forgotten about.

It's amazing how a little bit of lagging protects and prevents these little mishaps. Obviously one of our customers had been doing some reactive thinking along the same lines, as we had an emergency request for bubblewrap to put around a large urn in their garden. I hadn't considered our packaging shop to have a gardening section, but in fact this is a really practical use for bubblewrap. Perhaps we should think about doing some sort of promotion ...................

Grit Storage is diversification!

Scraping the car windscreen in the freezing cold this morning convinced me that winter is not just around the corner, but has arrived! Driving to work on some of the pot-holed rural back roads, where lots of the surface water had reverted to a glutinous mush,meant that the application of the brakes on any bend was extremely hazardous, made me realise how vital the work of the gritting lorries is. Unfortunately, even in the very worst conditions, they never seem to venture onto these roads. You just have to remember to drive that little bit slower and not feel under pressure by arriving a few minutes late (of course, better planning would ensure that if I left slightly earlier, this added stress to my daily life would disappear).
I realize now that I have subconsciously been aware of piles of grit gradually appearing on verges at known black spots along these routes - the memory of those snowy drives from last winter are still very much alive in people's memories. Preparation is obviously the key factor in maintaining a non-slip surface on routes at all times. A factor in our attracting one of our new customers - a gritting company, based near London, is the fact that our site is so well-placed - near to the M40 and the centre of Oxford. The grit is delivered to a designated area in our storage centre and then their trucks are able to collect loads for spreading around all the NHS sites in Oxford. Hopefully, they won't have to use it too often, but it's reassuring to know that we shall all be safe walking around all those interminable pathways which link many of the different buildings in our local hospitals.

Looking after caravans, campervans and the odd ice-cream van...

Nature's own beautiful firework display is now available for everyone to enjoy and there are some amazing colours out there. Reminding us to make the most of the milder weather and sunshine, especially with the darker nights this week, before we have to batten down the hatches and resort to an evening in front of the flickering screen. Many caravan and campervan owners have returned after their last outing at half term and are wondering whether that large vehicle now parked in their garden, blocking the way and the sunlight, is actually quite such a good idea for the whole of the winter.

This could be why have seen a steady stream of mobile homes in all shapes and sizes wending their way into our storage depot from the local villages and as far away as London - we are very close to the M40. This is such a cost-effective way to ensure that these very valuable vehicles are kept securely over the winter months. We are even arranging for some of the campervans to have an MOT, so that the owners do not have to travel to us and waste a very boring morning having this routine, but essential work carried out. Interiors can be kept totally pristine by using a couple of moisture absorbing Absorpoles for sale at our packing shop.

One very relieved caravan owner arrived just before dark yesterday, as her vehicle had been vandalised and broken into on the drive outside her house and storing it with us meant that there was no need to repair the damage immediately - it could be done at her leisure and the caravan was totally secure stored here. Another relieved ice-cream van owner came all the way from Basingstoke, not because his van was damaged, but because he needed somewhere very secure to keep his van stored for the winter months. Using our start-up service means that he can be assured that the vehicle will start immediately when spring arrives and the demand for ice-cream resumes. Perhaps one of the celebrity chefs should promote baked Alaska then he could sell ice-cream all year round, but then we would lose a customer - so not such a good idea!