Groundwork Business Briefing

The Health and Safety Executive is helping businesses to fight the myths surrounding health amp; safety. This month the myth being busted is “Risk Assessments must always be long and complex”.

They claim that it is not paperwork that will save someone’s life it is action that protects people. Risk assessments need to be fit for purpose and acted upon. You can even use bullet points!

The Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals Regulations came into force on 1 June. Under these Regulations new obligations are placed upon any company producing, importing, using or placing a substance, preparation or article on the EU market. The aim of the legislation is to ensure a high level of protection of human health and the environment, as
well as improve industry competitiveness and innovation.

New research published by the Carbon Trust has identified that the use of advanced metering by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) could save 2.5 million tonnes of CO2 emissions and £300 million per year.

The results are based on a three-year trial to investigate the potential benefits of new technology in metering. On average, the companies who took part in the trial saved over £1,000 a year on their energy bills. The largest financial benefits were seen by multisite businesses, such as retail and wholesale chains, and for high energy users, such as manufacturing companies.

It was World Environment Day on Tuesday 5 June, and this year the focus was on climate change. World Environment Day is a United Nations global celebration which started in 2004. In England and Wales only 8,000 people took part that year. This figure rose to 58,000 in 2006 and in 2007 they were looking for even more people to take part.

A website has been developed for people to ask themselves three environmental questions. The website has been used since 14 May and will be online through to September, when the results will be used calculate carbon footprints.

• www.mendoftheworld.org.uk

Many businesses think of high water bills as an accepted overhead, but this need not be the case. Your business may be able to save thousands by putting in place water-saving devices, many of which are low cost, or even free.

You may not be aware of it, but the rain that falls on your roof is often included in your water bill as a surface water charge. Businesses pay both for the water used and water discharged from their premises, so it is in their best interests not to let this resource go to waste. Careful use and management of water can lead to significant cost savings.

One thing you can do is to apply to Groundwork Oldham amp; Rochdale’s ‘Get your hands on our butts’ competition to receive a FREE water butt. We have one to give away to the company who can best tell us in one sentence how a water butt will benefit their business.

To enter for the competition send an email to:

Jacqueline.Roberts@groundwork.org.uk

or telephone Jacqueline Roberts at Groundwork EBS on 0161 624 1444.

The Fleet Hero awards aim to highlight best practice in fleet management. Maybe you've reduced the total mileage travelled, reduced emissions from private cars used for business, used technology innovatively, led by example, or just taken a series of sound steps that together have made a big difference. Whatever the method, your achievements can be highlighted through these awards.

Organisations of any size that have gone the extra mile to reduce the impact of business travel can apply and those that are successful will receive FREE national publicity.

For more details and to apply for this award visit the website:

www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/fleet/fleetheroawards

Leaks from compressed air systems waste a massive amount of energy, and therefore money! A recent survey showed that 50% of companies who use compressed air had taken no action to identify or reduce leaks in the last two years.

Groundwork is now able to offer a compressed air leak detection service to help businesses measure the extent of the problem and initiate an improvement programme.

As part of the Groundwork Guaranteed Interview scheme Groundwork offer a free service to local Oldham employers to help recruit reliable, trained staff. The scheme is aimed at helping people currently claiming Incapacity Benefit back into work.
For further details contact Cherie Wolfenden on 0161 624 1444, or email cherie.wolfenden@groundwork.org.uk

Magistrates fined a packaging manufacturer in Wigan a total of £50,000 after it admitted failing to comply with regulations designed to reduce the amount of packaging material that is disposed of. The company were also ordered to pay costs of over £2,000 to the Environment Agency, which brought the prosecution.