EIMS & the Environment

Environmental Impact

EIMS is a business services company, with a relatively low direct environmental impact. We do not directly extract raw materials, process or use dangerous chemicals, or produce large amounts of toxic waste. However we aim to pro-actively protect the environment, and we have identified 3 main areas where we can make a real difference:

The 3 Pillars of our Policy:

• Responsible use of energy [primarily heating, lighting, travel, and ICT devices].
• Responsible use of materials [primarily office supplies and cleaning chemicals].
• Responsible disposal of waste [primarily recycling].

Our environmental policy is as follows:

EIMS’ Environmental Policy

• Ensure the responsible use of energy in our business, including conserving energy, reducing waste through improving energy efficiency.
• Conserve natural resources by reusing and recycling materials, and favouring the purchase of goods using recycled materials, with recyclable packaging.
• Meet or exceed applicable government requirements including regulations on waste disposal.
• Encourage employees and suppliers to be environmentally conscious and to suggest and implement feasible improvements to environmental, health, or safety conditions.
• Provide a safe workplace and ensure that personnel are trained in Health & Safety procedures and risk assessment and have appropriate emergency equipment.

Practical Action to Protect the Environment

Examples of specific, practical steps we have taken in line with this policy include:

Promoting Our Services!

• Our sales and marketing services replace expensive, environmentally damaging face-to-face visits by road, rail, or air, with cheaper, environmentally friendly virtual visits over the telephone and the internet.
• Our web and email marketing communications replace mail shots and flyers that use paper and fuel-intensive transport.
• Our ASP services provide software solutions in a more energy- and resource-efficient manner than distributed 'fat-client' applications.

Conserving Energy

• Actively encouraging employees to minimise energy usage, by switching off energy-consuming devices such as lights, heaters and computers whenever they are not in use. The person responsible for closing the office each night checks for devices which can be switched off as part of the security check.
• Pursuing energy-saving policies such as switching water heating devices to time-switches.
• Introducing more efficient devices, such as low-energy, fluorescent light bulbs, and purchasing equipment with energy-saving features, such as power-saving computer, display and storage devices.
• Reducing the use of fuel per employee-mile by using smaller, more fuel efficient company vehicles or by using one vehicle to transport multiple staff visiting a single client site.
• We support the government’s 'cycle to work scheme', and as a result we have more people cycling to work.
• Conducting meetings by teleconference or web-conference in place of physical travel where feasible.

Reducing Toxicity

• Using reduced toxicity solutions wherever feasible, such as using wax ink printers to replace toner printers.
• Requesting our cleaning services company to use biodegradable cleaning products wherever feasible, and to employ the utmost care in the handling and disposal of chemicals, including complying with COSH regulations.

Reducing Waste

• Pro-actively recycling waste paper separately from other office waste. We use a paper shredding and disposal company for this purpose.
• Sourcing supplies from vendors who use recyclable materials and who comply with recycling legislation.