It’s not hard to see that the world is changing. With more and more people becoming environmentally conscious, it’s important for businesses – big and small – to take steps towards sustainability. One area of business that can easily become more sustainable is your garage. In this blog post, we will discuss some ideas you can use to make your garage run more sustainably!
CSR
Few topics are more popular right now than sustainability. Every industry’s businesses are currently putting a lot of effort into fulfilling their corporate social responsibility (CSR) requirements and minimising their environmental impact. Government rules and customer demands, which apply to all industries, are prompting many owners of garages and body shops to carefully consider their operations’ environmental impact. Where to start is perhaps the biggest challenge presented by this.
Where to start…
The obvious place to begin is with your utilities. Keep a tight eye on your gas, electricity, and water bills to spot any potential leaks or inefficiencies. Ask a renewable energy-based electricity supplier to conduct an energy audit so they can find any locations where you are squandering energy. Making sure that lights are turned off in rooms or areas that are not in use is another way to save money and lessen your impact on the environment. You may also think about installing motion sensors or timers on your lighting fixtures. Although the initial cost of installing solar panels might be too high, it might still be worthwhile. Finally, keep an eye out for leaks in your air lines that could reduce the effectiveness of your compressed air system and get your compressors serviced often.
Small changes
You can also install motion-sensor lighting in your garage. This is a great way to reduce energy consumption and save money on your electric bill. Additionally, ordering consumables in bulk can help you reduce packaging waste and save money in the long run. Also, using refillable containers for items such as engine degreasers can help reduce your use of single-use plastics.
Single-use plastics
Single-use plastic items (SUPs) are used only once or for a brief time before being discarded. There are widespread and potentially severe effects of this plastic waste on the environment and our health. Reusable alternatives are less likely to enter our oceans than single-use plastic products.
Examples of single-use plastics include plastic coffee cups, cleaning product containers that aren’t refillable, plastic cutlery, plastic disposable gloves, and paper towels.
In order to be sustainable, businesses and individuals need to stop using single-use plastics and use substitute products such as reusable coffee cups, refillable cleaning product containers, reusable gloves, and reusable towels.
Sustainable investments
One way to make your garage more sustainable is to install solar panels. Solar panels are a great way to reduce your reliance on fossil fuels and they can also save you money on your energy bill.
Stop using single-use products
All vehicles have several reservoirs for hydrocarbon-based liquids, including transmission, hydraulic, and engine and gearbox oils, and these always end up spilling. To wipe up spills like this and pieces as they are taken apart, fixed, and put back together, garages and workshops often use disposable blue-paper rolls or rags, but this practice has a big impact on the environment.
It is naturally wasteful to use a disposable product just like that. Any cleaning cloth or blue paper towel that has been saturated with oil, and many other industrial fluids, is considered hazardous and therefore must be stored safely before being disposed of by a contractor authorised to handle hazardous waste. They may even end up in a landfill on occasion if improper disposal practices are used. Rags and blue paper towels are also not particularly effective at absorbing liquids.
Instead of using this conventional method, numerous garages and workshops are hiring outside vendors to deliver premium reusable wipes and oil-trapping mats. These items are then collected, washed, and then returned for reuse after becoming soiled. This method not only cuts down on cleaning time, saving you money, but it also removes the need to handle the purchase, delivery, storage, and disposal of single-use materials, not to mention the wasteful packaging these come in.
Overall
Combining this strategy with some of the other actions mentioned above will enable you to cut costs, lessen your impact on the environment, and increase your appeal to clients who are more and more concerned about sustainability.
By taking some simple steps, you can make your garage more sustainable and help protect the environment! What are you waiting for? Get started today!
If you have any questions or would like to learn more about sustainability, please contact us. We would be happy to chat with you about ways you can make your garage more sustainable!
