How To Make Your Office Eco-Friendly & Sustainable

Making a few small changes to your office can make a big difference in protecting the planet. Here we share our top tips to help lower your company’s carbon footprint. These include how to reduce energy consumption, choose environmentally friendly products and recycle more. All of which can help your business be more sustainable. These eco-friendly tips are easy to implement in any office.

Reduce Energy Consumption

You can help reduce energy consumption by turning off all electronics, lighting, and heating at night and when not in use. Computers, printers, and copiers use energy when not in use if they are never turned off.

When electronics are on standby, they use energy so it is important to turn all electrics off at the switch. You can use a timer to automatically turn off switches after hours or a smart current-sensing power strip which will turn off when not being used.

Likewise, you can use motion-sensor lighting for areas that do not need to be constantly lit, and turn off lights when they are not in use. You should also be sure to adjust the thermostat accordingly in cooler and warmer months. Unused spaces don’t need to be heated, and a programmable heating/cooling system can help with this.

Choose Environmentally Friendly Stationery

Replace your office products and stationery with greener, more eco-friendly alternatives. Use stationery that is made from recycled, renewable products and can be recycled again after use.



There is a variety of office equipment made from recycled materials available. Recycled notebooks, pens, and ring binders are much more environmentally friendly than non-recycled products. You can also buy recycled copier paper, or lighter-weight paper, which can be cheaper too.

Use Renewable Energy and Energy-Efficient Appliances

Switch to renewable energy and green sources such as solar and wind to power your office. Switch to LED or compact fluorescent lighting as they are the most eco-friendly light bulbs, using 75% less energy than standard bulbs. Open the blinds and use natural light to light up your office to get the most from natural resources where possible.

Look for an energy-efficient certification such as the Energy Star label found on new equipment. You can also select appliances which have energy-saving settings. Choose an all-in-one printer that prints, copies, and scans as they use less energy than a standard machine.

Add Plants

Adding a few plants to your office will help make your office greener. Plants emit oxygen and absorb pollutants to improve indoor air quality and make the air cleaner and healthier for employees. Adding a bit of nature helps brighten up the office to increase productivity and create a happier workspace.

Encourage Green Commuting

Encourage your employees to lower their carbon footprint by walking, cycling, and carpooling. Catching public transport such as the train or bus also helps if possible.

You could even reduce employee travel by allowing staff to work from home or telecommute a few days per week. Encouraging greener commuting will cut greenhouse gasses and help the environment.

Recycle

Recycling is one of the easiest ways to make your office more sustainable and eco-friendly. Recycling reduces the amount of waste sent to landfill, conserves natural resources, prevents pollution, and saves energy.



Set up recycling bins around the office for glass, paper, plastic, and metal. Ink cartridges and electronic waste can also be recycled at specialist points and computers can be donated to charity to be reused by others.

Avoid Deposable Plastic

Avoid using plastic cups and cutlery in your office kitchen or canteen. Providing refillable water bottles and encouraging people to bring in their own cutlery makes a big difference.

The average office worker uses 500 coffee cups per year, switching to a kettle and mug could save all of those cups from going to landfill.

Insulate Your Building

A Lot of heat in a building can be lost due to poor insulation. Upgrading your office insulation will not only save a large amount of power, keeping your office more eco-friendly but will save you large energy bills. This is extremely important in the current energy crisis with energy prices reaching new highs.

Try out a few of these techniques to make your office more eco-friendly today. From reducing energy consumption to recycling, you too can make a difference in helping our planet.

For more sustainability tips, get in touch with us today and shop our new fully recyclable, environmentally friendly range at our website.

 

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