Business benefits

Save money through improved resource efficiency

Whatever your business's size and sector, you can make significant savings by becoming more resource efficient or 'lean' in the way that you do things. This is often about making a few simple low cost changes and then perhaps using these savings to fund other more ambitious projects.

You could save money for example by:

• Cutting down on the wastage of materials, packaging and labour.
• Lowering your spend on water, effluent and energy.
• Reducing the need for costly waste disposal.

Did you know?

• Wastage of materials/products, utilities and labour typically costs ten to twenty times the cost of waste disposal itself.
• Businesses can often save as much as 1% of turnover or €1,200 per employee depending on the sector and type of business¹.
• Savings go straight on the bottom line - how easy would it be to do this by winning more business!?

Costs of materials and energy are set to continue to increase over the next few years. Across Ireland, businesses are already realising the financial benefits of resource efficiency (see our case studies). To join them today, select the resource you want to focus on from the icon to the right.

Improve your reputation and competitiveness

Resource efficiency also brings other commercial benefits for businesses. Improving your environmental performance is part of corporate responsibility and can help you to:

• Stay on approved supplier lists.
• Attract ethical investors (a rapidly growing area).
• Attract and retain the best employees.
• Reduce the risk of environmentally-relevant accidents and prosecutions.
• Lower insurance premiums.
• Keep your neighbours and other stakeholders happy.

Did you know?

• Ethical investment is growing at twice the rate of other investment and ethical purchasing is now on a par with the cigarette and alcohol markets combined!
• Many companies, including SMEs, are now being asked by their larger customers and insurers about their environmental credentials and whether they have an Environmental Management System such as EMAS or ISO14001.

In turn you can try to encourage and support your supply chain, helping to reduce their costs and yours whilst maintaining security of supply.

Need information, advice or support? Contact us on 1850-green1 (1850 473361) (helpline is available Monday to Friday between 09:00 and 17:00). Eligible companies may also submit a request for a free Resource Efficiency Audit. It is recommended that companies register and use the audit tools prior to requesting a Resource Efficiency Audit.

"If we are not respectful of the environment and of the societies where we operate, people will cease to trust us and our brands and will cease to buy them. Corporate Social Responsibility is a hard-edged business decision - not because it's nice to do but because it's good for our business"
Niall FitzGerald, CEO, Unilever

¹ Source: UK Envirowise Programme

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