When running a business in this day and age, there are various aspects to consider, one of them being Eco-friendliness. This is a relatively new concept, as it wasn’t that long ago that the environment became an object of concern. Despite this, any business that wishes to attract a modern clientele should seriously consider optimizing their impact on the environment.
The majority of a company’s impact on the environment stems from the supply chain, meaning anyone looking to improve their effect on the environment should stat with the supply change. Listed below are some of the top tips for making your supply chain more environmentally friendly.
Choose Sustainable Materials
When it comes to improving the environmental impact of your supply chain, you must first consider the materials being used for transportation. Industrial strength containers are perfect for use in your supply chain, as they’re often crafted from recycled plastic and also last for years on end.
Reusability is one of the most important factors to consider when it comes to optimizing your company’s greenness. For instance, wood may seem like the superior material to recycled plastic; however, this isn’t necessarily the case. Wood is more prone to rotting, splintering, and breaking, meaning that the use of wood can result in more waste. A plastic container that you can use for 50 years is better than a wooden one that you can use for five.
Install Motion Sensors or Low-Voltage Lights
If your business uses a warehouse in its supply chain, you can install motion sensors and low-voltage lights into this space. This reduces energy consumption, as with timers or motion sensors, your lights will turn off and not drain electricity. Similarly, low-voltage lights don’t use as much energy as their high-voltage counterparts. Not only does making your electricity more energy efficient help the planet, but it also saves you money in the long run.
Execute Routine Safety Checks
If you pay close attention to your warehouses and distribution centers, opportunities for renovation become much more apparent. You should be sure to log these so that you can familiarize yourself with potentially recurring issues. If you’re aware of issues that arise consistently, you can focus on measures that prevent these from happening. One thing that you should always pay attention to is good insulation and humidity conditions, as these factors significantly improve the life expectancy of buildings.
Open a Regional Distribution System
A regional distribution system allows for the serving of customers on demand. As a result, you won’t be producing copious amounts of products that never leave the warehouse. In order to achieve this, you should log your data and note trends. This will give you an insight as to which products are most in demand so that you can produce the right amount of them. Of course, a regional distribution system means that customers will have to wait longer for their products. Despite this, if you explain the reason behind such, they’re likely to appreciate this.
Curtail Transportation Costs
The routes that your driver takes to deliver items may not be the most Eco-friendly of options, meaning you may wish to assess this. The smallest tweak could minimize your fuel consumption, from a different route to other fuel-saving techniques. Furthermore, there are also apps available that help you plan a route based on traffic or weather conditions. These are all aspects to consider when optimizing the Eco-friendliness of your supply chain.
Is your supply chain as green as can be? Will you be implementing any of the above tips to improve?