The following case studies demonstrate some of the sustainability challenges organisations face and the ways in which they are addressing them.
Sharp Manufacturing Company of the UK, Llay, Wrexham
Sharp has long been one of the world’s best known and most recognisable electronics brands and the company’s research and development has produced some of the world’s most innovative products.
Sharp has also had a long association with Wales. SUKM (Sharp Manufacturing Company of the UK) has had a substantial presence on its site near Wrexham for 25 years and during that time, the site has been responsible for the manufacture of a range of appliances for this leading brand.
The site in Wrexham which directly and indirectly employs over 750 people is now Europe’s largest manufacturer of solar panels, producing both mono-crystalline and poly-crystalline panels for the global market place.
Given this establishment within the north Wales social and business landscape, SUKM is well aware of its responsibility to sustainable development and acting as an agent for positive social and economic change whilst similarly being conscious of the need to minimise the impact of the site’s operation on the environment.
Practising and promoting sustainable development sits at the heart of SUKM’s operation. SUKM has achieved the Carbon trust standard and is an active member of Business in the Community. The operation was also one of the first signatories to the Welsh Assembly Government’s Sustainable Development Charter launched earlier this year.
SUKM has also committed itself to education on the technology and benefits of renewable energy working closely with local schools and FE colleges. To assist in this role, in March 2010 a new Solar Centre was opened at the site in Wrexham by First Minister Carwyn Jones. The Solar Centre provides a ‘hands on’ educational experience for anyone interested in solar and its impact on our lives and energy potential.
Operationally, in order to meet customer, legal, regulatory and corporate policy, SUKM management sets exacting and challenging quality and environmental objectives which are embedded into the day-to-day operation of the site. All SUKM employees are responsible for working to these objectives through planned improvement programmes to produce measurable results.
These objectives are also reflected in SUKM’s internal financial reporting mechanisms with strategic targets set for finance at the Llay site demonstrating the important linkage between sustainable development imperatives and operational issues. Communication with site staff is also important and a six-monthly environmental newsletter is produced.
SUKM have twice been awarded with the “Highly Commended” plaque for Sustainability Reporting in the Wales Business & Sustainability Awards (in 2007 and again 2008) for their annual Site Environmental & Social Report. In 2008 SUKM were joint winners in the “Resource Efficiency – Utilities, Raw Materials and Waste” category and Overall Winners of the Wales Business & Sustainability Awards 2008.
Bill Thomas, General Manager of the Quality / Environment Centre said: “We have been fortunate to have top management and financial backing in order to trial and run many of these activities that have helped us to move towards a more sustainable operation.
However, we deal with these in the same way as any other expense project and they need to demonstrate that they give a good financial return or they have a significantly beneficial effect on our environmental or social impacts.
The foresight and support of our colleagues in the Finance Department and divisional management is vital to any success and it has allowed us to demonstrate here that being greener can have noticeable benefits to the bottom line.
After a number of such successful initiatives over the last few years, our Finance colleagues appreciate this and are happy to report the monetary savings just as we are happy to report the environmental improvements. Being sustainable really can mean being more profitable. Once companies start to realise this, the ball doesn’t stop rolling!”
Mid and West Wales Fire & Rescue Service
The Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service covers some 4,500 square miles and makes-up almost two thirds of the landmass of the Principality of Wales. A wide variety of risks are found within our operational area ranging from the petro-chemical industries in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire and Briton Ferry, Neath, to the risks associated with heavily populated conurbations such as Swansea, Port Talbot and Llanelli. There is an extensive farming community and many other light industries throughout the area. These, together with an extensive coastline, inland waterways and large sparsely populated areas are some of the specialised risks within the Mid and West Wales region. The Service is organised into six County Commands, one each to cover the unitary authority areas of: Carmarthenshire; Ceredigion; City and County of Swansea; Neath and Port Talbot; Pembrokeshire; and Powys.
The central Headquarters is located in Carmarthen whilst the Fire Safety Headquarters are sited at Morriston, Swansea. The Service is comprised of a mixture of wholetime, day crewed, retained and volunteer stations, which number 57 in all. The current complement of staff, both operational and support, is approximately 1,400. Along with the other two Fire and Rescue Services in Wales (and the others throughout the UK) the service is part of the local government framework. Elected members are nominated from each of the six unitary authorities and they collectively form the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Authority. This acts as the main policy making body and governs the adoption of various working practices in line with statutory guidelines laid down by the Welsh Assembly Government. The Fire and Rescue Authority meets on a quarterly basis and its work is supported by three main committees namely, Resources, Personnel, and Performance Review and Audit. All of these groups meet regularly to consider issues within their areas of responsibility. The Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service is funded directly by its six local government Authorities on a basis commensurate with their registered electorate.
The Fire and Rescue Service in England and Wales is governed by various pieces of legislation and regulatory guidance but the one law that is of particular importance is the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 (the Act). The Act requires all fire authorities to make provision for fire fighting purposes, which means not only putting out fires but also protecting life and property in case of fire. It also makes provision for attending road traffic collisions and other emergencies as well as providing a statutory footing for undertaking community safety activities.
Responsibility for the Fire and Rescue Service in Wales is devolved to the Welsh Assembly Government. In accordance with the Act the Assembly has produced a National Framework which sets out priorities and objectives for Fire and Rescue Authorities and contains guidance to enable the discharge of their functions.
In order to carry out its functions the Service has a large number of buildings and a large fleet of vehicles. The use of these assets and of the Services fire fighting and rescue operations can have a significant impact on the environment, on society and on the local economy. In recognition of this the Service formed a Sustainability and Environment Group in November 2008. To indicate the Service’s commitment to this issue the Group is chaired by an Assistant Chief Fire Officer and includes an elected member. In June 2009 the Service, under the guidance of the Group published a “Sustainability and Environmental Strategy”. This strategy outlines the Service’s commitment, aims and objectives under the following twelve headings:
Contributing to the Sustainable Development of Our Communities; Accountability for Supplies and Services; Water; Energy; Utility Management; Transport and Fleet Management; Travel Plan; Operational Activities – Firefighting/Rescue; Greenhouse Gases and Landfill Methane Emissions; Waste Management and Recycling; Wildlife Conservation; and Biodiversity.
The strategy also affirms the corporate commitment to achieving the green Dragon Level 5 status, meeting the requirement of the Sustainable Procurement Assessment Framework (SPAF) and setting realistic performance indicators.
The Finance Department at Mid and West Wales has for some time supported the concept of embedding sustainability reporting into the annual statement of accounts. As a result of work carried out by “Accounting for Sustainability” and the Treasury, the Head of Finance sought and received approval from the Services’ Policy Board to develop this concept into practical reality, reporting progress to, and working with, the Sustainability and Environment Group.
This work will start with an exercise of looking at the current data available and comparing this with the data required to monitor the strategy and to meet recommended reporting standards. This will probably lead to a data gap which will have to filled. When data sets are reasonably complete, realistic targets can be set and reported against in the annual accounts.
Steven Flather FCCA; FMAAT,
Head of Finance, Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service
