Business owners have a large responsibility on their shoulders. Not only are they responsible for running a company and supporting those employees who work for them, but they must also be conscious of being leaders in the community they work in. This can mean being involved in charitable organizations, getting involved in politics or serving as an example in activities that help make our community a better place to live. This holds true in the push for all of us to become more environmentally friendly. Business owners are often looked up to by the community and if they display green efforts, it’s likely that others will follow in their footsteps.
Not sure how to make ‘green’ improvements to your business? Read on for some tips from the professionals!
Clean Green
When choosing a cleaning company to take care of your office building, it’s important to consider their impact on the environment. Some cleaning companies can use an enormous amount of water while cleaning your carpets while others might use products that emit harmful toxins that are not good for the environment, your employees or you!
ServiceMaster Professional Building Maintenance of Lincoln uses the ServiceMaster Clean proprietary Capture & Removal Cleaning system that reduces particulate emissions dramatically. Where other cleaning systems simply swirl and circulate dust back into the workplace, they actually remove it, leaving your air quality and working conditions improved. They also use Green For cleaning products that are free of surfactants and wetting agents and contain no ingredients that are considered corrosive, alkaline or acidic.
Interior Dry Cleaning Systems is another good example of a local company that is committed to help our environment and provide a safe and effective cleaning service. Their carpet cleaning system saves up to four gallons of water per square foot of carpet cleaned and they use a non toxic, biodegradeable, green seal certified cleaner. Interior Dry Cleaning is committed to our environment and our community and using cleaners such as them and ServiceMaster is a great way to show you as a business owner are also committed to these causes.
Optimize Energy
“Today, most all building owners want their facilities to be environmentally responsible and healthy places to live and work,” states Pat Killeen with Engineered Controls. “They also want to optimize energy usage without compromising comfort. Building control technologies play a big role in assisting buildings in meeting the new and expanding energy requirements as well as helping them be more environmentally friendly.” Options include occupancy sensors to control lighting, optimizing HVAC system performance, monitoring and controlling energy usage and monitoring and controlling carbon dioxide by way of introduction of fresh air into homes and buildings. Engineered Controls also employs specialists in Energy and Environmental Optimization programs that assist building owners improve the energy efficiency of their buildings through implementing different Energy Conservation Measures (ECMs). These ECMs typically offer a building owner a return on investment ranging from six months to six years.
Helping you optimize energy is also a goal of Black Hills Energy. Saving you money and helping you conserve energy is the number one goal of their energy efficient programs. Black Hills Energy offers a variety of programs for their residential, commercial and industrial customers and participating in these programs will result in multiple benefits for you and your employees. They also offer a number of insights on saving energy on their website that you can refer to and use as a resource. Energy efficiency improvements to your business can reduce energy consumption, decrease energy cost, improve worker comfort, and improve productivity.
Black Hills suggests some of the following energy savings tips:
–Save money by insulating.
–Place weather stripping and caulking around doors and windows.
–Use space heaters to heat individual spaces rather than increasing the heat throughout the building.
–Close off unoccupied rooms or offices.
–Utilize awnings, overhangs and window shades in the summer to keep your office cooler.
–Turn down heat or air conditioning when employees leave at the end of the day and on weekends.
Reduce Waste
Reducing waste is a large part of going green and is especially important for businesses as they can produce enormous amounts of waste. One company that helps businesses reduce waste is Signs Now, which provides a line of products that are recyclable or biodegradeable. They have papers and fabrics and a banner material as well as direct-printed rigid board for interior and exterior uses. They also offer a recycling program for customers who purchase products from their green line. They can bring the product back after it’s used and they will recycle it for free. Signs Now also has a new printer which uses inks that contain no VOCs and don’t emit any hazardous air pollutants. The odorless prints meet GREENGUARD and AgBB criteria and is also ENERGY STAR efficient.
You can also reduce waste in a number of practical ways at your office. For example, encourage your employees to bring in real utensils and plates and wash them after lunch rather than using disposable every day. You can also replace Styrofoam coffee cups with a personalized, reusable cup for each employee. Other ideas are starting a recycling program so the paper and other waste your employees produce every day can be put to a good use and using hand towels or dryers in the bathrooms rather than paper towels. The good news is that many of these ‘green’ efforts will also save you and your employees money!
Encourage Employees
An important part of being a business owner is encouraging your employees to adopt healthy habits, both for their jobs and for the environment. Find ways to encourage your employees to be more environmentally friendly. Consider giving them gifts of reusable lunch containers or coffee mugs or offering a bonus for those employees who recycle or implement other green programs. If you have a larger office, you might consider developing a ‘green’ committee made up of employees whose job it is to put green efforts in place in the office. Put someone in charge of turning the lights off and the thermostat down (or up) each day and designate another to be responsible for the recycling. Ask them to do research and come up with new ideas you can implement in the office. You might be surprised by how much some of your employees will be excited to be involved in this effort!
As a business owner, it’s important you be one of the leaders in your community in the green movement. Rely on the help of professionals who can help you put products or services in place that not only will save the environment, but can also save you money!