Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( )

Transcription

1 Case Studies Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( ) Leading home improvement retailers and brands signed a responsibility deal in 2009 to reduce the environmental impact of home improvement products through optimising packaging and reducing waste. Further information about the commitment can be found at Date: October 2010

2 WRAP s vision is a world without waste, where resources are used sustainably. We work with businesses and individuals to help them reap the benefits of reducing waste, develop sustainable products and use resources in an efficient way. Find out more at Written by: Case studies provided by signatories of the Home Improvement Commitment Sector and hosted by WRAP to publicise the good work to raise awareness and encourage replication. Front cover photography: [Signatories to the Home Improvement Sector responsibility deal.] While steps have been taken to ensure accuracy, WRAP cannot accept responsibility or be held liable to any person for any loss or damage arising out of or in connection with this information being inaccurate, incomplete or misleading. It is the responsibility of the potential user of a material or product to consult with the supplier or manufacturer and ascertain whether a particular product will satisfy their specific requirements. The listing or featuring of a particular product or company does not constitute an endorsement by WRAP and WRAP cannot guarantee the performance of individual products or materials. This material is copyrighted. It may be reproduced free of charge subject to the material being accurate and not used in a misleading context. The source of the material must be identified and the copyright status acknowledged. This material must not be used to endorse or used to suggest WRAP s endorsement of a commercial product or service. For more detail, please refer to WRAP s Terms & Conditions on its web site: Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( ) 1

3 Contents 1.0 Home Retail Group (Argos and Homebase) Case Study: reusable packaging for sofas B&Q Case Study: reusable packaging for kitchen worktops (Carrierpac) Henkel Case Study: Secondary packaging...7 These case studies show how the Home Improvement Sector Commitment signatories are working, alongside WRAP, to achieve the following: Reduce packaging by 15% by the end of 2012 * - this covers all packaging on own-label and direct sourced products. Reduce waste to landfill from their operations by 50% by the end of 2012*; and Help consumers to recycle more. (* measured against a 2007 baseline). More details about the responsibility deal can be found at Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( ) 2

4 1.0 Home Retail Group (Argos and Homebase) Home Retail Group is a founding member of the WRAP-led Home Improvement Sector Commitment, which has set industry targets to reduce packaging and waste to landfill. After reporting an 80% reduction in waste to landfill in the past five years 87,000 tonnes to 13,000 tonnes the Home Retail Group has now announced that it is targeting a further 25% reduction in 2010/11. The Group is also on target to reduce packaging on a fifth of the product range - saving 3,000 tonnes comparing 2008/9 to 2011/ Case Study: reusable packaging for sofas Home Retail Group delivers thousands of sofas to customers each year a process which has traditionally required a significant level of packaging to protect the high-value product from damage during transit, in order to avoid customer dissatisfaction, damage and returns. It is estimated that over five million items of upholstered furniture are purchased in the UK each year, which are typically packaged in a combination of plastic sheeting and corrugated cardboard. Once delivered, customers are then responsible for the disposal of the packaging equating to 15,000 tonnes of materials each year much of which ends up in landfill. Home Retail Group wanted to solve this environmental problem by producing a protective cover that was both reusable and recyclable, and minimised waste to landfill. The solution was to develop, test and trial a new reusable packaging system - the sofa bag - for the distribution and delivery of upholstered furniture. As no off the shelf solution was available, Home Retail Group undertook a series of trials, supported by WRAP, alongside project partners, to design and test 3,000 sofa bags. This demonstrated that the sofa bag was fit for purpose and that a closed-loop system could operate; successfully delivering product from manufacture and distribution to the end customer, and then reusing them again through the system. Importantly, customers saw a benefit from not having to dispose of packaging materials and no complaints about the bag were made during the trial. The rate of returns was also lower. Since the trial Home Retail Group, its suppliers and contractors have perfected the packaging model, and addressed the cost-effectiveness factors identified as being critical to making adoption a commercial success. The final design is a folded envelope of reinforced bubble wrap material, which has a protective outer coating of low density polyethelylene (LPDE) and an inner lining of non-woven polypropylene tissue. The edging tape and stitching are also polypropylene rather than nylon to facilitate recycling. It is produced in four sizes, to accommodate chairs, large and small two-seater sofas, and three-seater sofas. When the lifecycle is exhausted a plastics reprocessor recycles the sofa bags. As the first retailer to introduce this fully reusable, recyclable packaging concept, the biggest challenge that the company faced was to establish a closed-loop usage process. This follows the packaging from manufacture including delivery to the UK, onward through the distribution network to customer and back again ensuring bags are inspected, cleaned, and re-distributed to the manufacturer. Home Retail Group has now begun a phased introduction of the reusable sofa bag for furniture manufactured in the Far East, and use for European manufactured items will follow towards the end of The reusable bag offers real potential for environmental and cost savings, through reduced raw material and disposal costs, less waste and reduced product damage and therefore minimising CO 2 impacts. The company estimates that the introduction of the sofa bag will reduce single use packaging by at least 1,800 tonnes each year equivalent to the weight of over 250 double-decker buses. Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( ) 3

5 The sofa bag has been developed by Home Retail Group and it represents the culmination of several years testing and trial. We believe that there are clear benefits for the environment, the business and our customers by making use of reusable and recyclable packaging and from reducing the amount of packaging associated with the products we sell. It demonstrates our continued commitment to the reduction of waste going to landfill. Maria Thompson, commercial director, Home Retail Group The sofa bag at the warehouse ready for distribution And being delivered to the customer at home. Signatory Press Office contact: Denise Bigwood, tel: Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( ) 4

6 2.0 B&Q 2.1 Case Study: reusable packaging for kitchen worktops (Carrierpac) B&Q delivers thousands of kitchen worktops each week and previously used a single-trip packaging system for home deliveries, which generated a high volume of packaging waste, with financial and environmental implications. Kitchen worktops are a high-value item where a pristine appearance is expected and therefore effective packaging is required to protect it during transit. The slightest scratch can lead to the item being rejected and scrapped. Before the project, the single use packaging delivery system was causing up to 900 tonnes of damaged worktops per year - a level B&Q saw as unacceptably high. B&Q identified that a reusable packaging solution could potentially reduce costs and environmental impact, although this required robust testing and a trial to establish the commercial case for sanctioning a shift in its distribution model. Packaging consultants Outpace Packaging Solutions, successfully received R&D funding through WRAP s retail programme to work with B&Q and logistics partner CEVA Logistics to trial an innovative reusable format for the home delivery of kitchen worktops. The Carrierpac was developed, a reusable robust sleeve manufactured largely from polypropylene with approximately 45% recycled content, with the added bonus of being recyclable at its end of life. A range of packs were designed and manufactured to meet the variety of worktop sizes. The trial was a huge success revealing that the Carrierpac was technically capable of multiple reuses and was quicker to pack and unpack than the traditional cardboard alternative. Product damage was significantly reduced in fact no worktops were damaged during the trial period. This resulted in cost savings by eliminating losses of a high value product, as well as avoiding the costs and impacts associated with replacing damaged products. For consumers, the removal of the packaging by the delivery team for reuse takes away the inconvenience of recycling or disposing of the bulky single trip packaging. The positive trial results clearly gave the commercial reassurance required and B&Q has since adopted Carrierpacs for full national use. As a result, the company has achieved 1 million in cost savings each year; significantly reduced product damage and eliminated 1,200 tonnes of packaging per annum, due to cardboard no longer being used and reaching the waste stream. Some Carrierpacs have now been successfully reused 80 times. B&Q has also won a number of industry awards in recognition of the innovation. B&Q and WRAP are now continuing to work together to develop the initiative and see where the concept can be applied elsewhere within the business. B&Q has been leading the way on environmental issues since the early 1990s with initiatives in areas like timber, peat, paint, chemicals and packaging. We have a close ongoing working relationship with WRAP. This helps to ensure that we are joined up with the rest of our sector and aware of any packaging and recycling initiatives or pending changes in legislation. We have already been involved in a number of projects with the organisation. One of these involved developing reusable Carrierpacs for our kitchen worktops, which has saved the company over a million pounds a year on packaging costs - along with a reduction of 1,200 tonnes of cardboard from our waste stream each year. It has also led to a significant reduction in product damages. Jonathan Couper, Packaging Design Manager at B&Q Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( ) 5

7 Kitchen worktops transported before Carrierpac. An empty Carrierpac ready to receive a kitchen worktop for home delivery Signatory Press Office Contact: Alex Duff tel: Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( ) 6

8 3.0 Henkel 3.1 Case Study: Secondary packaging Adhesives specialist Henkel identified that valuable improvements could be achieved on the secondary packaging used for its PVA and Ready Mixed Adhesive product lines by both optimising the packaging specifications and by moving to standardised packaging that could be used for several different products. By replacing product-specific printed cartons (see before photo), the company has reduced the number of packaging variants from eight to three, and has replaced full cartons with a corrugate collation sheet or tray and shrink wrap (see after photo). In addition, for some large format product lines, products are now supplied as singles, thereby eliminating secondary packaging altogether. As a result, Henkel has significantly reduced packaging materials with secondary packaging weight reductions ranging from 47 to 100% across the different lines. Additionally, the production process has been streamlined with increased focus on quality. Henkel also indicates there are additional hidden benefits from efficiencies in inventory management by having standardised packaging and using less bulky material. For example, it is possible to hold more secondary packaging materials adjacent to the packing lines. We recognise and accept that concern for the environment is an integral part of Henkel s corporate business strategy. We are committed to the implementation of an environmental policy that goes beyond compliance with the law, which integrates sound environmental practices into our business decisions and management activities, so as to ensure that they are acceptable to the community. To achieve this aim, our management is fully committed to support the reduction of packaging and waste to landfill. We will continue to work with our customers in all channels to identify and maximise the reduction in packaging and reduce our impact on the environment. Simon Duggan-Hill, Managing Director at Henkel UK & Ireland Before 8 different corrugated cases used to pack 6 pots After cases replaced with 3 formats of corrugated sheet and shrink film Signatory Press Office Contact: Victoria Edwards, Head of Corporate Communications tel: Home Improvement Sector Commitment ( ) 7

9 Printed on xx% recycled content paper