Following an intensive evaluation by an independent assessor, leading logistics specialist Multipart has been awarded the coveted ISO 14001 certification for its headquarters and distribution centre at Chorley.
This international standard recognises that the company has a comprehensive and robust environmental management system in place covering the 19 acre site. The assessment, which took place over a three month period, looked at every aspect of the company’s environmental practices and their impacts.
Key elements included examining in detail the extent to which processes are in place to:• Make the most efficient use of heating and lighting in the 280,000 square feet distribution centre. • Reduce the level of emissions from transport entering and leaving the site.• Cut waste through re-use and recycling of packaging and other materials.• Avoid potentially harmful discharges into local watercourses or the atmosphere.
Multipart Risk Manager Andy Cope, who is responsible for the company’s environmental compliance, said: “The assessment was a rigorous one and I was very pleased that we passed first time without the need for any changes to the way we do things. It was carried out by Lloyds Register of Quality Assurance, one of the UK’s leading independent assessment firms, whose standards are very high.
“Although we passed with flying colours it’s important not to become complacent and to continue our efforts to reduce the impact of our operations on the environment. To this end we are currently looking at using lower powered lighting activated by movement sensors in some of the less busy areas of the distribution centre. And we constantly look at ways to re-use packaging and increase the amount of material that can be recycled.”
Multipart’s ISO 14001 certification is valid for three years but is subject to six-monthly inspections. “This means that there can be no let up in our efforts,” says Andy Cope, “and the contribution of every one of our 180 employees at Chorley will be important in maintaining and improving on the high standard that we have now reached.”
