With operating costs continuing to rise, it can be difficult to know how to reduce budget pressures without compromising on care, says Alison Halladay, Sustainable Advantage.
Waste management is an area where budget reviews are typically based on a price per bin and decisions are made using this apparently straightforward comparison. However, this method may overlook the fact that reviewing the actual waste arrangements on site can often deliver significant savings.
Sustainable Advantage has over 500 clients in the medical/care sector and is helping care home managers across the country to create sustainable waste management plans that reduce their waste costs and ensure their waste and recycling is effectively and efficiently managed, while fully complying with all legislative requirements.
Record keeping
Keeping up with record keeping and legislative compliance is crucial in a care home waste management programme. Ideal for the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and ISO 14001, the Sustainable Advantage online portal securely stores management reports and all compliance documentation (eg hazardous waste consignment notes, waste transfer notes, waste carrier licences) and can be easily accessed online 24/7 so you’re upto-date and audit ready at any time.
The process starts with a like-for-like analysis of the type and amount of waste produced at your site(s). This forms the basis of an initial pricing review, which invariably delivers savings as the procurement of more than £25 million worth of waste annually means it has access to very competitive rates. However, the greater savings are often to be made once Sustainable Advantage works with sites under its standard waste management contract. By increasing levels of recycling, reducing collection frequency, eliminating excess weight charges, combining site collections or using alternative suppliers, additional and significant savings can be made.
Waste segregation
Fundamental to cutting waste costs is waste segregation. Sustainable Advantage goes beyond the standard dry mixed recycling and it only requires working with account managers on site to set up systems; subsequently everything is co-ordinated during one call to a helpdesk, meaning that no further demands are placed on staff.
Further segregation of waste means you cut your costs, while services that will collect WEEE electrical waste, light bulbs, glass, batteries and food waste are sourced and co-ordinated. When it’s time to refurbish your premises, arrangements can be made for your old furniture to be removed, donated to charities and for mattresses to be recycled.
Sustainable Advantage not only takes things away, but can help boost your sustainable credentials; for example, it works with a manufacturer that supplies doormats featuring your logo that have been made from recycled materials.
Sustainable Advantage
Hersham Place Technology Park
Molesey Road,
Hersham
Walton-on-Thames
KT12 4RS
E: info@sustainable-advantage.com
T: 0203 544 2030
www.sustainable-advantage.com
