Office Friendly Dealer Association – Certification
‘We are absolutely delighted to receive this [Sheffield Business Award for Environmental Impact] on behalf of the members of Office Friendly. It reflects the clear, defined focus of the So-Go-Eco programme and promotes the success we have delivered in our environmental impact.´ Steve Harrop, Managing Director.
Client name: Office Friendly Dealer Association (OFDA)
Sector: Retail
Project: So-Go-Eco Programme
When: Ongoing since 2008
Summary
OFDA is an office supplies group made up of the UK’s top independent dealers. The So-Go-Eco Programme is a wide reaching sustainability scheme aiming to assess and award Office Friendly dealers across the UK with the Carbon Smart Certification. Tailored specifically for the office supplies industry, Carbon Smart and OFDA have been working together to improve the environmental performance of dealers, particularly focussing on energy consumption, waste management and fleet vehicles.
Client’s objectives
The goal was to successfully launch and deliver the So-Go-Eco Programme in partnership with Carbon Smart. OFDA envisioned a programme which would successfully integrate sustainability into each business and add value to the OFDA members as they progress along the scheme. Ideal outcomes for each participating dealer are:
• Carbon savings through clear practical actions
• Cost savings through reduced energy and resource consumption
• Staff engagement
• Green marketing advice
Process
Office Friendly dealers are located throughout the UK, from Cornwall to Scotland. The geographic range of the So-Go-Eco Programme makes the project complex to deliver therefore in order to visit all of the OFDA dealers, Carbon Smart have meticulously trained senior members of the OFDA team to carry out site surveys and thorough data collection. Site observations, data and findings are then relayed to the Carbon Smart team. Carbon Smart calculate each dealers’ carbon footprint, collate findings and award Carbon Smart Certification levels as appropriate to the dealers’ environmental performance each year.
Success
Thus far over 80 dealers have achieved Carbon Smart Blue and nearly 60 have moved up to Carbon Smart Silver Certification. Average reported carbon savings have been 16.1% tCO2e reduction per business, with the top performer saving 33.5% tCO2e. The programme has been extremely valuable to all the OFDA dealers in terms of reducing environmental impact and gaining marketing potential. As we move into 2011, the dealers are working toward the challenging Carbon Smart Gold Certification criteria. The success of the programme is widely recognised – So-Go-Eco programme won the Environmental Impact award at the Sheffield Business Awards for a second year in a row.