A serious problem caused, among other factors, by the emission of polluting gases that impact the atmosphere and cause the so-called greenhouse effect or carbon footprint that we are all leaving behind.
What logistics solutions should we adopt to reduce environmental damage? Naeco recommends what actions to take to achieve this.
What do we mean when we talk about carbon footprint and how is it calculated?
The carbon footprint is known as the totality of greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted through direct or indirect actions, generated both by people and organizations, as well as by events and products. But do we know how to calculate the CO2 we generate?
To calculate the carbon footprint that your organization generates, it is necessary to know exactly the levels of pollution or greenhouse effect emissions (GHG) that we produce every day. This requires collecting data on the carbon footprint that we leave directly and indirectly through our business activities, electricity consumption, use of packaging, materials, transportation, waste management, etc.
The carbon footprint is measured in tons of CO2 equivalent and is calculated by multiplying the activity data by emission factors. The result we obtain will help us to reduce greenhouse emissions, identify potential savings, meet environmental requirements required by law, introduce improvements that minimize our CO2 footprint and incidentally, significantly improve our social reputation.
6 key measures to reduce your company's carbon footprint
Although it is inevitable that we will have an impact on our environment, there are ways to reduce the negative impact, for example, taking measures in logistics areas, one of the areas that generates the most emissions. These are some of our recommendations
- Bet on green and sustainable logistics. It is about implementing measures that favour this type of logistics. Some of these measures are to optimize routes, promote the use of ecological vehicles on those routes, or through packaging that helps reduce CO2 emissions during transport.
- Reduces energy and fuel use. For example, through the programming and automatic disconnection of the equipment or the correct and optimized use of the facilities.
- Launch the processing of ISO environmental certificates. Implementing management systems to obtain the accreditations that demonstrate compliance with the established legal regulations and the firm commitment that your company has with the environment, are two fundamental aspects, which will not only favour your image, but will also allow you to audit your processes and reviewing the carbon footprint, thanks to the work carried out by these environmental quality verification entities.
- Use a more flexible, lightweight, and custom packaging. Opting for lighter packaging is one of the measures that allows you to save more on production costs, reducing CO2 emissions during transport and, consequently, they help to improve our environment.
- Uses recyclable plastic pallets and returnable transport containers. It is recommended that plastic packaging be manufactured following an ecological philosophy and applying sustainable measures. This means that they should be recyclable and reusable, since there are many advantages they offer, both for storage and for transporting products. In addition, promoting the production and use of returnable transport packaging (ERT) will be a "sine qua non" condition from 2020, since, from that date, single-use plastics will be prohibited by the European Union.
- Optimize the transport flow. By creating management plans that readjust and slow down the transport flow, you will be able to reduce CO2 emissions in the coming years and, therefore, improve the logistics of your company.
Naeco's environmental commitment
Since our beginnings, at Naeco (before Nortpalet) we have always had two clear objectives, first, to offer an efficient product to our customers and second, to follow a philosophy focused on sustainability that allows us to reduce our carbon footprint and take better care of our environment. To achieve this, we have decided to join forces and bet on constant innovation to become a benchmark in green and sustainable logistics.
These are some measures that we have adopted throughout our history and in which we continue to advance:
- The circular economy. With this organizational philosophy, the aim is to end the linear economy that prevailed until now focused on producing, using, and disposing of to move towards a more circular model, based on recycling, reducing waste and transforming waste into resources. In this way, we increase the useful life of the product, optimize the stocks, and flows of materials, energy and waste, achieving greater efficiency in the use of resources.
- Manufacture reusable pallets, 100% recycled and 100% recyclable. We have own laboratory for characterization of recycled plastic materials. Undoubtedly, a sophisticated procedure in the control of the finished product, which allows us to fulfill one of our fundamental objectives: to accompany our products throughout their entire life cycle and for the waste of some to become resources for others. In addition, by reusing and recycling our plastic pallets we can save energy, reduce the need for landfills, save natural resources and protect the environment in a sustainable way.
- Be committed to environmental quality. As a sign of this commitment, Naeco has quality certifications. Our goal is to continue to improve ourselves, working in this sense to advance in sustainability, innovate in new environmental plans that allow us to increase our accreditations, but, above all, that allow us to maintain the trust and satisfaction deposited by our users.
Fortunately, the current social and business trend is aimed at increasing our environmental awareness and commitment, carrying out measures that are increasingly sustainable and beneficial for our planet.
For this reason, at Naeco, we have always been highly aware of and committed to caring for the environment, striving to emit fewer polluting gases and reduce our carbon footprint through the application of actions that favour the recycling and reuse of products.
And you, are you ready to take on the challenge of reducing your company's logistics carbon footprint?
