Sustainability does not come cheap
SUSTAINABILITY
One of the strongest messages to come out of ‘ Greening the Chain ’ was just how difficult it is for smaller businesses to make progress on sustainability , because they lack the resources and expertise of larger companies . “ It ’ s more challenging for small and medium enterprises ( SMEs ) to meet new sustainability requirements , such as supplying carbon data ,” confirms Katherine Rusack , senior sustainable procurement manager at Balfour Beatty .
She continued : “ Last year we spent £ 1.28bn with SME suppliers . They are a key part of our supply chain . For us to achieve our sustainability goals , we need to support them in a way that ’ s relevant to their business and operations .”
To this end , the company has partnered with the SCSS , who provide materials and training free to Balfour Beatty supply chain members . “ It ’ s a collaborative initiative ,” Rusack says . “ Many customers , such as National Highways , and larger supply chain partners , also support the school . This is a great example of the construction industry coming together to support the upskilling of the supply chain of all sizes .”
“ SINCE 2010 WE HAVE REDUCED OUR SCOPE 1 AND 2 CARBON EMISSIONS BY 54.7 PER CENT ”
KATHERINE RUSACK SENIOR SUSTAINABLE PROCUREMENT MANAGER AT BALFOUR BEATTY
Sustainability does not come cheap
Low- or no-carbon products often cost more than their carbon-rich counterparts . At present there simply is not the economies of scale on sustainable products to drive down price . So in the short term , meeting net zero targets can mean businesses will end up paying more for materials .
Or does it ? Not necessarily , says Katherine Rusack , senior sustainable procurement manager at Balfour Beatty . “ We need to be mindful about how we review costs ,” she cautions . “ For instance , some products cost more up-front but operational costs are reduced .”
She cites a recent Balfour Beatty project with National Highways . “ We identified that we could achieve a 15 per cent carbon saving by moving from
hot asphalt to warm asphalt , which also had the potential to reduce the project programme length .”
And by communicating this fact to its supply chain , the company has ensured that the switch to warm-mix asphalt is now standard across the strategic road network and the supply chain . “ This creates more demand for the lowercarbon solution , and gives security of demand for the suppliers , which has resulted in it being a cost-neutral solution ,” says Rusack .
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