This Is Zero

🌍 How to engage your staff on your sustainability journey → A Waste Awareness Session ♻️ I’m currently supporting a local initiative called Amplifi in Tunbridge Wells, helping the local business community come together and inspire each other to drive positive environmental change. One of the consistent themes to come out of that work has been how businesses can better engage their staff. Whether it be through gamifying more sustainable behaviours, implementing EV schemes, or setting up internal working groups, a workshop is often top of the pile when it comes to getting people interested. Whether it’s because it’s a bit of time away from the desk is another matter. In 2025, I’m already scheduled to deliver a number of these sessions, but if you’re interested too, here is what I’ll be covering across a half-day session: Carbon and Waste 101 session: Why are we here and what does this all mean? 🌱 🙋 Mini Climate Fresk: Learning about the fundamental science behind climate change in an interactive format 🌍. 🙏 Interactive game: Engage the team, challenge assumptions, and get the creative juices flowing 💡. 😀 Brainstorming session: On your business, how it works, and quick wins that could be made internally. If this sounds up your street, get in touch 📞. I’d love to see how we can get you and your team on the path towards sustainability 🌿. #SustainabilityMatters #WasteReduction #ClimateAction #GreenBusiness #EcoInitiatives #StaffEngagement #SustainablePractices #WorkplaceInnovation #CarbonReduction #TeamBuilding

One of the best things you can do next year for your business? A Waste Audit. Sounds sexy, I know! ⬇️ The attached image is one from Otto’s Coffee Shop, relatively local to me in Kent. In 3 weeks, they collected 15,000 coffee cups showing just how wasteful something so relatively insignificant as grabbing a morning coffee can be. At Otto’s, after a day of service, their waste consists of a handful of paper napkins used by customers to mop up spills and around 40 recyclable foil milk-caps. That's it. Putting another spin on it, earlier in the year, I ran a waste audit for an accountancy based in London. On a Friday afternoon, I took two hours to run a waste audit session with them. What we saw? 75% of their kitchen waste was Costa Cups. The largest remaining item was paper towels from their toilets. Within a month, they’d agreed a lease for their own (very decent) in-house coffee machine and they’d installed ultra-efficient hand dryers, resulting in a 90% cut in their main waste categories. Since they’d slashed their waste production, we also renegotiated their waste contract which saved them 4-figures in cold, hard, cash. You can find Otto’s here: 37 High St, Sevenoaks TN13 1JD And if you want to cut your waste costs, production, and emissions too, I’d love to run an audit with you too. Just say when! #SustainabilityMatters #ZeroWaste #WasteAudit #EcoBusiness #SustainablePractices #GreenBusiness #WasteReduction #ClimateAction #BusinessTips

Does this sound familiar to you? ⬇️ My Christmas day always includes receiving a lot of lovely cards from family and friends, a big Christmas Dinner and the opening of presents. Do you get surprised like me when you see two black bin bags full of wrapping paper? The amount of plastic packaging you need to bin that all the gifts (and food) comes in. Given this is a once-a-year occurrence, its really easy to see just what the waste is that we’re making. Btw, I’m not saying don’t send Christmas cards, buy thoughtful presents for your family or cook a lovely meal. On a business level, it often isn’t quite as simple as simple to identify any excessive waste production because it is typically just BAU and there is never really a point in time across the working year where looking at waste can be a focal point. If you were going to do one thing next year to reduce your waste production - either personally or at a business level, what would it be? #SustainabilityMatters #ZeroWaste #CarbonReduction #EcoBusiness #WasteAudit #SustainableBusiness #GreenInitiatives #ReduceReuseRecycle #BusinessTips #ClimateAction

🎄✨ With the holiday season in full swing and Christmas just around the corner, it feels right to focus this week's posts on the topic of waste ♻️. Last week, I talked about how simple energy efficiency ⚡ initiatives can deliver huge rewards for businesses of all sizes – whether it’s cost savings 💰 or cutting carbon emissions 🌍. Waste is another area where reducing waste production can save money on collection fees 🚛💸 and reduce the amount heading to landfills 🗑️, requiring recycling ♻️, or food waste generating methane gas 🌱. In less than a couple of hours ⏱️, a waste audit can give you all the information you need to drive impactful changes. 👉 So, have you ever conducted a waste audit? If so, what did you find, and how did it help? ❓ If not, why? #SustainabilityMatters #ZeroWaste #CarbonReduction #EcoBusiness #WasteAudit #SustainableBusiness #GreenInitiatives #ReduceReuseRecycle #BusinessTips #ClimateAction

Want to know the real value of energy efficiency? Here are 3 case studies…. I’ve said it a few times this week but energy efficiency remains one of the largest opportunities for businesses looking to move the needle on their sustainability efforts - but because it isn’t sexy, it is often overlooked. Here are 3 projects I’ve delivered recently that showcase just why it might be something you want to look at in 2025. Case Study 1: > A secondary school local to me installed a Building Management System (BMS) as part of a wider set of upgrades to their 1950s buildings, boilers and thermostats etc. To date the school has reduced its energy costs by 25%. They also estimate they save 10 FTE hours per week for heating or maintenance issues/complaints around cold classrooms etc that no longer occur. Case Study 2 > I ran an energy audit for a logistics business based in the midlands with over 2,000 sq. ft. of cold storage over the summer. This highlighted issues with their HVAC systems and chillers. Regular maintenance had been stripped back as part of a prior cost cutting exercise but data showed the monthly energy cost since issues had arisen far exceeded the prior maintenance contract. Both systems are now 30% more efficient and are effectively saving 5-figures in energy costs each quarter. Case Study 3 (actually quite interesting, if I do say so myself) > A large warehousing facility in Kent had installed commercial LED lighting apx 10 years prior. It is worth noting that not LED lighting is the same and technology continues to evolved. A quick piece of analysis showed that newer LED tech was now over 60% cheaper than it was, were a further 30% more efficient AND provided better quality light. Just because you bought LED lights 5 years ago - doesn’t mean you shouldn’t upgrade or replace. With the new budget, and all the other financial challenges businesses are faced with, energy efficiency is a no brainer. Use less energy = Spending less money Use less energy = Fewer emissions Better energy management = Greater operational resilience This is the holy grail of sustainability. Could your business achieve the same in 2025? For a free energy audit, drop me a note and we can get some time booked in for 2025. #RealResults #CaseStudy #SustainableBusiness #EnergyEfficiency #Sustainability #NetZero #CarbonReduction #ClimateAction #BusinessSustainability

Energy management for businesses, made easy. Here’s how…. For many facilities teams, managing the buildings is a challenge to say the least. Managing issues raised by the occupants, damage, regular maintenance, retrofit projects - all sorts. As a result, energy tends to be focused on as an operational overhead. A means to an end and a bill that needs to be paid to keep people warm, the lights on and things going. Which is why an energy or building management system (EMS or BMS) makes so much sense. What sort of businesses will see most value from a BMS? >Educational facilities like schools, colleges and universities >Business parks >Manufacturers and industrial facilities >Landlords of office blocks, co-working spaces etc And what is that value exactly? 1. Cost Savings: A BMS uses smart technology to measure and manage energy in real time by automating heating, lighting, and ventilation. This isn’t just good for the environment—it slashes your energy bills too. 2. Improved Comfort: Rather than heating a whole school up to 19 degrees, including all the corridors, storage rooms, halls and unused classrooms, only heat the rooms in use and let corridors and storage spaces be cool. 3. Centralised Control: A BMS lets you set parameters and rules so you can monitor and adjust your building’s systems from one place, saving time and hassle. 4. Real Time Issue Alerts and Predictive Maintenance: It flags issues before they become costly repairs, extending the life of your equipment. 5. Data-Driven Decisions: Real-time analytics help you identify waste, adjust operations, and maximize efficiency. A huge boon when it comes to carbon emissions and sustainability. Want to know where to start or if the juice is worth the squeeze for your business? Just shout! #EnergyEfficiency #Sustainability #NetZero #CarbonReduction #ClimateAction #EnergyPerformance #BuildingSustainability #Compliance

Energy Efficiency Basics: EPC Ratings….they are a’changing. Are you ready? By 2028, all rented commercial and industrial buildings must achieve an EPC rating of C or higher, a substantial jump from the current minimum of E. Whether you own or lease your business premises, these changes will have a significant impact. For landlords, non-compliance isn’t just about fines of up to £150,000—it’s about the long-term viability of your assets. Properties that don’t meet the standards won’t be leasable, potentially rendering them financially worthless. For leaseholders, the risk is potentially significant operational disruption whilst works take place or worse - your building not meeting the standard and alternative premises needing to be sourced. So, what should you do? For Asset Owners Evaluate Upgrades: Conduct a detailed analysis of efficiency improvements, including insulation, glazing, lighting, heating systems, and smart building management. Plan Financing: Determine how to fund upgrades and manage timelines to avoid delays. Engage Tenants: Open lines of communication to coordinate efforts and minimize disruption. Start Communicating: This is a great opportunity to start to showcase the changes you’ve made. Now have a building that runs entirely on its own energy? Talk about it! For Leaseholders Stay Informed: Understand what your landlord’s plans are to meet the new regulations. Are they even aware? Assess Risks: If they’re aware, what works are going to be taking place, when and for how long? How will you handle the distruption? Costs: Are you going to be expected to support the works completion financially? Either directly or indirectly through changes to the lease costs? Whichever side of the fence you’re on, this is something James Major from HubbPro and I have been working on recently - and we’d love to lend you a hand too. If you’d like a conversation, just let me know. #SmartInvestments #EnergySavings #FutureProofing #EnergyEfficiency #Sustainability #NetZero #CarbonReduction #ClimateAction #BusinessSustainability #ESOS #EPC

The Role of Energy Audits for Businesses When was the last time you conducted an energy audit in your business? Here’s why it’d worthwhile to do it now…. Energy and fuel usage remains one of the most obvious, valuable and easily addressed areas that businesses have in order to tackle their emissions. So why are so few businesses taking things seriously? If I were to ask you whether your business uses energy efficiently, you'd likely say "probably." But deep down, there might be a nagging feeling that you could do better—even if you'd hesitate to admit it. Here’s where an energy audit comes in - and it doesn’t need to be costly! Last month, I delivered a free energy audit for a manufacturing business - supporting their CBAM compliance. Here’s what it uncovered: > Of the 10 pieces of plant machinery on-site, 3 had issues and were consuming far more electricity than they should have been. > Even though the production line wasn’t live over the weekends, the expected fall in electricity usage wasn’t being reflected in reality. Weekends only saw a 50% reduction in consumption vs weekdays when the business was expecting closer to a 90% reduction as nothing should have been drawing any real volumes of electricity whilst not in active use. > The HVAC system had active system faults and was running at 100% constantly. > Their 3 year old solar array had been offline due to a system fault for the last 9 months. It had generated no power over the whole of the summer and had been missed by the business. Why was all this happening? > In each case, the assumption had been that if it works on day 1, it’ll still be working perfectly on day 1,000. Unfortunately, without monitoring and maintenance, things had gone awry. > When issues had occurred, they’d been patch fixes rather than ‘proper’ solutions. Things were OK for a short while before going wrong again, but worse. > Regular system maintenance contracts had never been taken up based on cost-saving assumptions. Looking at the data though, regular maintenance would have SAVED approximately 3x the cost of a maintenance contract - and that was just looking at HVAC. The cost of the audit? Zero pounds and zero pence. Nothing. Nada. The value of the audit? A cost saving of 5-figures annually, reduced energy usage and reduced emissions - they also got their solar system back online. The value multiplier? They were able to align with CBAM, cut their embodied product emissions by apx 30% and are using this as a competitive advantage to support their European business. If you’re a business spending over £25,000 p/a on your energy (electricity and gas), I’d like to offer you a free energy audit too. #EnergyEfficiency #Sustainability #NetZero #CarbonReduction #ClimateAction #BusinessSustainability #EnergyAudits #BusinessStrategy #EnergyManagement

Amongst all the shiny things businesses can do to be more sustainable, energy remains one of the most valuable but least addressed opportunities. This isn’t just about things like LED lights. We’re talking about ESOS, EPC compliance smart measurement, building management systems, real-time consumption data and maximising the value of solar. How seriously is your business looking at this? #EnergyEfficiency #Sustainability #NetZero #CarbonReduction #ClimateAction #BusinessSustainability #ESOS #EPC #Solar

The Costs Involved in conducting a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Perhaps the most important aspect for a lot of businesses is understanding the costs involved in getting on the LCA boat. Businesses ultimately have two routes to solve the LCA challenge. >Do it in-house. >Get external support. Here’s what you need to consider in both cases so you’re not blindsided. In-House LCA >Tools & Databases: Whilst OpenLCA is free, it isn’t exactly beginner friendly! The costs for accessing essential databases like Ecoinvent start at around £3,500, and more user-friendly software like OneClickLCA, GaBi, or Umberto can exceed £10,000 per year for a single license, plus training and support fees. >Capacity Costs: The most significant expense is your staff time. LCAs typically take weeks, but frequently months to complete for someone who is technically competent. Multiply that time for someone approaching an LCA as a novice. >Total Costs: For example, a 3-month LCA project using a ‘good’ software package, including support hours, database access and being run by a technically competent employee could very easily cost a business over £50,000. >Long-Term Value: Businesses should evaluate whether the investment in the tools, support hours, staff training, database access makes sense based on how many LCAs they plan to complete annually. Getting external support: >The use of any consultancy support is going to come at a cost. >The consultant will be charging for their own costs of delivery (including platform and database access etc) but the main cost will be time. >In terms of time, given you’ll (hopefully) be relying on someone with specialist knowledge, they’ll be able to deliver the work in a much shorter delivery window than you might be able to achieve internally. >They will also have a deeper pool of knowledge and competency which can be relied upon to avoid pitfalls, issues and to ensure the project is delivered to the highest quality. >Depending on the external partner, pricing typically starts around £10,000+ for a basic LCA. The bottom line? An LCA isn’t cheap but tomorrow, I’ll cover why the juice might just be worth the squeeze. If you’re also looking for a helping hand on your own LCA journey, send me a DM or pop 30 minutes in the diary via my Calendly link in my profile. What’s stopping you? #LCA #LifeCycleAssessment #Sustainability #EPD #EnvironmentalImpact #CircularEconomy #CarbonFootprint #SustainableBusiness #GreenBuilding #NetZero #SustainableDevelopment #BREEAM #LEED