As one of the most energy-intensive industries, there is a growing responsibility on electrical manufacturers to supply products that use sustainable materials and that are as energy efficient as possible.
Sustainability is extremely high on the agenda of most companies now, and electrical retailers are beginning to reflect this in the brands and products they push in their stores.
As a key event in the industry’s calendar, it is important for us as the organiser of the ERT Awards to also play our part and reflect these changing values. With the help and support of our amazing sustainability partners, AMDEA and Electrolux, we are proud to report that the ERT Awards 2022 – which took place in London at the end of November – was officially a Certified Carbon Neutral event!
By working closely with carbon reduction engineers and The Grand Connaught Rooms in London (the venue for the event), we meticulously calculated all the carbon this event produced. The Business Carbon Assessments were completed by an independent third party to the international standard and the GHG Protocol, which is internationally recognised. Once complete, we offset all the carbon produced by the event by supporting a Renewable Energy Project in Brazil.
This project, which centres around a ceramics factory near Buenos Aires, alleviates deforestation (illegal logging), avoids greenhouse gas emissions and promotes a more sustainable supply chain in one of the poorest regions of the country – the Caatinga, an exclusively Brazilian biome, which is one of the most threatened ecosystems on the planet
The project has switched the fuel used by the factory from illegal firewood to agricultural and industrial residues. This biomass would have otherwise been discarded as waste, so the fuel switch not only transforms residues into something useful, but also enables many local individuals to make a living – or complement their income – by supplying biomass waste directly to the factories.
Among the community, employees and suppliers, more than 110 families directly benefit from the project’s activities, in addition to the indirect impact from donations provided to local families (housing and food donations), educational and sports institutions in the region, such as the sponsorship of a soccer team and a folk group in Pernambuco, Northeast Brazil.
THANKS TO OUR SUSTAINABILITY PARTNERS
AMDEA’s members are committed to delivering a more sustainable future which supports the delivery of net zero homes. Sustainability is a key driver of innovation, positively reducing the environmental impact of appliances, from design and manufacture, through usage, repair, recycling and recovery of precious resources.
Our sector is striving to ensure that all phases of an appliance’s life contributes positively to achieving a circular economy.
Over the last 20 years AMDEA members have dramatically and continuously reduced the energy and water consumption of home appliances. An increasing percentage of recycled materials are used to make new appliances and the energy used in production is increasingly derived from renewable sources.
Appliances consume the greatest percentage of their energy in the ‘usage’ phase – up to 80 per cent of the total. AMDEA’s Know Watt’s What campaign aims to educate householders to use their appliances in the most efficient and sustainable ways.
Providing consumers understand and use the eco-saving technologies designed into the products already in their homes, more than 130 million essential appliances across the UK will collectively make a major contribution to reducing energy and water consumption, supporting the challenge of reaching net zero, as well as saving significant amounts on energy bills.
At the ERT Turning Point Live Conference and ERT Awards event, AMDEA shared an insightful video as a trade tool from its Know Watt’s What campaign. The video is used to help boost retailers’ advice to customers on how to choose and use the energy and water saving features built in to today’s appliances.
At Electrolux, we take a lot of pride in the way our appliances have helped shape millions of people’s lives for the better over the past 100 years. As a global leader in home appliances, we have a tremendous opportunity to eliminate barriers and help our consumers make sustainable choices.
We continuously work to be a Better Company, with safe and resource-efficient operations, reducing our own footprint, as well as our suppliers’.
We strive to create Better Solutions – products and services that enable people to save energy, water and resources every day while helping to foster a more circular economy.
Across the world, we strive for Better Living by inspiring and empowering people every day to make choices that will help them live more sustainably.
By improving our operations, which partnerships we enter, the community initiatives we support, and the products and solutions we develop, we are committed to keeping sustainability as a key business area focus in the coming decade.
At the ERT Conference and Awards event, Electrolux also shared an inspirational video about educating consumers on the benefits of a more sustainable lifestyle – to rethink how and what people eat, improve how we care for our clothes, and respect our resources and use them in a conscious way. “Now is the time to act for a better tomorrow,” the company said.
