Our Own Commitment

Our Own Commitment

We are doing our best at all levels to reduce our environmental impact. Here are some of the actions we have taken and the results to date.

Production

95% of our washroom products are manufactured in the UK - cutting out emissions that would have been released during transportation.

Delivery

We are working on reducing the level of emissions that is a result of our service delivery.

  • All of our trunking vehicles are Euro 5 compliant.
  • Our urban delivery vans all meet Euro 4 certification.
  • Our drivers follow the SAFED (Safe and Fuel Efficient Driving) driver training program.
  • We ensure our delivery drivers plan their routes to cut down fuel consumption.
  • We are assessing the results of an electric vehicle trial we have undertaken within the Greater London area.

Processing

All the sanitary units, roller towels and mats that we collect from our customers are thoroughly cleaned at our processing plants and service centres. There again, we have done great progress in reducing our energy consumption.

  • We have lowered our water and electricity consumption by upgrading our facilities, with huge investment made in new high-tech laundry processing.
  • Our new Revolution laundering machine uses 30% less steam than the conventional method of washing cotton roller towels.
  • Our new processing plants use 45% less gas per kg than our previous plants.

Recycling

We know we still have a lot to do with regards to recycling, however we have already started to ensure our product’s end of life is well managed.

  • Our Sanitact bins are broken down and recycled into new products.
  • Most of our old floor mats are reused as animal protective mats.
  • Any electrical product disposal complies with the European Commission’s WEEE (Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment) regulation.

Where we are going

We have teamed up with Groundwork an environmental regeneration charity, to assist us with the assessment of our carbon footprint and ultimately implement an Environmental Management System that will first help us meet the requirements of BS8555, working towards ISO14001.

“Everyone needs to take responsibility for their impact on the environment and it is important that large companies, like Initial, take this seriously. This is a vital issue and all steps taken to manage energy use, minimise waste, improve recycling and reduce the company’s carbon footprint can make an important contribution to improving environmental performance and reducing cost, an ever more important benefit in these challenging times."

Tony Hawkhead, Chief Executive, Groundwork

Year of Sanitation

Initial Textiles & Washroom Services have just launched the ‘Hands on Hygiene’ campaign on Sanitation in cooperation with the United Nations’ Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) to create more awareness for global sanitation issues with its business communities and with the general public.

2008 was declared International Year of Sanitation by the UN to face a critical situation. A third of world’s population – 2.6 billion people, have no access to clean water, soap or basic sanitation. The resulting poor hygiene is responsible for millions of deaths, particularly among young children in developing countries every year.

During the ‘Hand on Hygiene’ campaign, Initial will also work closely with the Save the Children charity to provide local communities and schools in Africa with sanitation facilities and educational programmes to teach children about hand hygiene.