How Sustainable is your Facility?

It will not come as a surprise that sustainability is relevant in the Facility Management (FM) industry, given the imminent need for change to save our planet. What you may not have considered, however, is the benefits it can bring to your company. The fact of the matter is that sustainable facility management can mean a decrease in carbon footprint and healthier buildings in general – but right now, sustainability is a hot topic which makes it an excellent business strategy.

Environmentally sensitive companies are held in higher esteem than their traditional counterparts, because when people buy a product or place their trust in a company, it makes them feel good to know that they are also contributing to a wider cause. One that benefits the most people in one transaction. The need for sustainable practices is urgent, and as a facility manager, you can incorporate these practices in a way that benefits both the planet and your business.

A large part of the job of a Facility Manager is and should be energy management. HVAC, lighting, water usage, refrigeration, plumbing, communications… All of the essential components to running a building are the same ones that we need to analyze to reduce the carbon footprint of the building.

The use of technology and the IoT can help you to manage the energy consumption in your building. You can program lights to sensors so that users don’t have to remember to turn them off, you can automate toilets and you can speak about car sharing. This last point is particularly interesting – education is a fundamental pillar of systemic change, and it is an excellent place to start if you are not ready to make a big investment in practical resources.

There’s only so much you can do alone. But calling a meeting with the main users of your building can pave the way to success with regards to sustainability. The advantages are that aside from helping to reduce your company’s carbon footprint, you can also save money, raise awareness and improve your company’s reputation. Not only that, but as we mentioned, people are more willing to work with environmentally responsible companies.

So what can you bring up in the meeting? Rather than tell people to turn off lights, use HVAC units less and be sure to turn off faucets after hand-washing, treat the meeting as a team-building day. Ask the participants to come up with ideas and ways to make your facility more sustainable, perhaps host a competition between departments that encourages them to make more mindful choices.

These choices can start before workers even enter the facility. Car-sharing and remote working can substantially reduce your team’s carbon emissions. A cold lunch day where the staffroom microwave isn’t pinging at all over lunchtime is another idea for you to consider. Innovative proposals can excite people into making a change, and the fun aspect means a happy, motivated workforce to boot.

Newsflash! Superdry Restoration Inc is in the process of making the switch to 100% green products in line with our commitment to sustainable practices. We’d like to encourage our partners to do the same, no matter what the scale of your business. More natural products for cleaning, locally sourced where possible to reduce emissions caused by transport are just two of the ways we can work together to combat climate change.

We have set targets to achieve carbon-neutral emissions, and while it is not an overnight process, it is a step in the right direction that all of us need to acknowledge and work towards. Setting targets can make the shift to sustainability more achievable, as it breaks down the process into smaller, more manageable steps. Think: what can we achieve by next month, next year, in five years?

You know that sustainability can benefit the planet, our people, and even your business. Chasing profit directly can often have the opposite result – the first port of call has to be chasing good values. In turn, this positively affects profit margins, because people are happier to work with you.

Organize an awareness day with your teams to brainstorm ideas, in a teambuilding format or otherwise. Get everybody on board to share ideas about how to make your facility more sustainable, and remember to set targets with your team as well as document the progress. It’s in our hands to protect the planet, so let’s do it!