These days it is becoming more and more important for businesses to take responsibility for their actions. Corporations, with all their power, have the greatest influence on communities, and for this very reason they must act responsibly.
Being socially responsible
It makes sense for a business to act with their community in mind. Their employees work and live within the local area, their customers are also functioning within the community. For a business to be sustainable, it should act to protect and prosper, not diminish and destroy.
Plastic packaging
As of late, plastic and unnecessary packaging has come to the forefront of community issues. Plastic is not a sustainable product, and can still be around for hundreds of years before it breaks down. It is also devastating to marine environments, with many fish now reported to contain plastic toxins.
Auto Vision is acting to minimise waste as much as possible. Unfortunately the industry and associated materials (vinyls, printer toners etc) are quite wasteful and not able to be recycled. However we have put the following into place in order to be as sustainable as possible!
Steps we are implementing
Engaging with suppliers to reduce packaging
Majority of vinyls come wrapped in plastic to protect during transit. We have engaged with our main supplier and devised a "wrap and return" system where we keep the plastic wrapping, and then return it for them to use on our vinyls. This way, eventually, they will not need to use any virgin plastic to wrap our goods.
New recycling program for cardboard and paper
Auto Vision now has a dedicated cardboard and paper recycling bin, provided by SUEZ. Perth has decent recycling program for these materials, and they are worthwhile recycling (unlike some other materials which get shipped overseas or end up in landfill). Our bin is being collected once a month and these precious resources and now able to be reused.
Nespresso pod recycling
We have had a Nespresso pod recycling program in place for quite some time now. The cardboard box can hold thousands of pods. They are then collected, free of charge, and taken to be recycled. The aluminium pod can be made into new aluminium, and the coffee grounds are composted.
Plumbed water filter
We also recently had a water filter plumbed into our sink. Prior to this we were purchasing spring water in plastic bottles for our water cooler. Although we will need to eventually replace the filter, this is significantly cutting down our waste, and ongoing costs!
Printer toner recycling
Officeworks offer a recyling station for all makes and models of printer toner cartridges, including large format printers. The cartridges are taken by Planet Ark and made into roads, garden beds, pens and rulers. We will be collecting and returning both our small office printer, and large format toners to return.
Further improvements
We can always do better! Small changes will lead to bigger change. We will continue to investigate, and question if things can be done differently.