How to Maintain A Sustainable Ethos in Your Company’s Production Process

Julie Starr • May 5, 2022



There remain obstacles, even while process manufacturing businesses are definitely engaging in sustainability. Typically, corporate sustainability objectives and efforts are set without any explicit, actionable criteria for plant personnel. However, this doesn’t mean that implementing more sustainable procedures within your business is rendered impossible. If you’re not sure how unsustainable your company is in its present state, it could be a good idea to calculate your company’s overall carbon footprint using a free online and thorough calculator so that you are able to accurately identify pressing matters which need to change in your company’s production process. But if you can already pinpoint some issues or simple swaps to make, read on for more inspiration that can help your business take effective steps to a new and improved sustainable state. 

Switching To Reusable Absorbents

Switch to an absorbent reuse programme, where absorbents are cleaned for reuse and collected oil is recycled, instead of utilising single-use absorbents for oil drips and spills. You could even implement swaps in the workplace where you might be lacking in reusable shop towels, for instance, which have been proven to improve air quality and reduce waste compared to disposable wipes, making them an overall greener option. 

Upgrade And Repair Equipment

On your journey to building an overall sustainable brand , you should be looking to actively upgrade or repair your equipment as needed on a regular basis or rota in order to prevent any potential defects, leaking fluid, and other inefficiencies which may disrupt the regular ongoings of your business. It is also imperative that you try to avoid unnecessary equipment (sought out to meet a “just in case” surge in demand), which ultimately ends up wasting energy in the production process. If this doesn’t necessarily align with your business innerworkings since you’ve transitioned from using physical equipment to adhering to in-built software to communicate with your clients or other business partners, such as utilising an online whiteboard to put in product , you should be actively training your employees on your new processes and procedures. This will help significantly reduce any errors, downtime, and wasted energy

Work With Suppliers

Consult suppliers for better options. Examine the downstream process of your supplier. Collaborate with them to ensure on-time delivery and waste-free packaging solutions. Instruct vendors to ship items on reusable pallets that may be stored for future use. Further, partnering up with a waste-exchange program or material marketplace for your unwanted material can help your business avoid an excessive build-up of waste.

Know The ‘Life Cycle’ Of Your Production Process

The goal of sustainable production is to guarantee that things are produced in a way that conserves resources and protects the environment’s regeneration ability. Sustainable goods ensure that future generations will have access to the natural basis of life. This, in turn, requires a revamped approach to research, design, and production.

The Life Cycle Assessment is a standard tool for SM implementation (LCA). It is a method for thoroughly examining the environmental effect of various human activities, including the corporate production of products and services. LCA may be used to detect environmental impacts resulting from an industrial sector’s actions.  LCA may provide a developer with valuable insight into any product, allowing them to find ways to lessen a product’s or process’s environmental effect.

5 Everyday Items That Can Quietly Boost Your Brand

By Julie Starr • July 17, 2025
The best branding doesn’t always come from big campaigns or expensive graphics. Sometimes it’s the smaller stuff that leaves the biggest impression. Things people actually use, touch, or carry with them. That’s where your brand can quietly make its mark without needing to shout about it. If you’re only focusing on social media and business cards, you’re leaving a lot on the table. Here are five overlooked ways to get your name out there that feel natural, useful, and more personal. Thank-you slips If you’re already sending out orders, there’s no reason not to include a short thank-you slip. You can easily get these made through any decent online print shop , and they’re usually pretty cheap to run off in small batches. Just a simple note that says thanks, maybe with a reminder to follow you online or a cheeky discount code for next time. It’s quick, thoughtful, and makes the whole order feel more finished. Customers notice that kind of detail, especially when everything else they buy online comes with zero personality. You don’t need a complicated design either. Just something clean with your logo, a message that sounds like you, and maybe a social handle. The point is to give them a reason to come back or remember your name without it feeling forced. Branded zip pouches If you sell physical products, offer services, or run events, small zip pouches are surprisingly effective. Think of the kind you’d use for stationery, receipts, or travel bits. You can get your brand printed on the side and hand them out with purchases or include them in welcome packs. People keep them because they’re actually useful. They get tossed in handbags, school bags, or glove boxes and your logo just keeps turning up. Cleaning cloths for glasses or screens This one works brilliantly if you’re in tech, health, beauty, or anything involving screens or eyewear. A simple microfibre cloth with your branding on it can go a long way. Everyone needs one. Whether they use it for glasses, a phone screen, or their laptop, it’s something they hang onto. It’s not the kind of thing people throw away, and that means your name sticks around too. Receipt envelopes You might already use little envelopes to hand over receipts or business cards. Branding those envelopes is a small change that makes a big difference. Instead of someone getting a scruffy bit of paper in a plain sleeve, they’re handed something that feels a bit more finished. You can even add a message inside. Doesn’t need to be anything dramatic. A simple “thanks for visiting” or “see you next time” is enough to add a personal touch. Wet wipes or mini hand gels If your business is in hospitality, food, or anything hands-on, branded wet wipes or pocket-sized hand gels are surprisingly popular. People actually use them, especially at festivals, food stalls, pop-ups, or kids’ events. They end up in handbags or cars and stick around longer than you think. They don’t scream “marketing” either. They’re practical, and when done right, they make your business feel thoughtful. That’s what good branding does, it shows you’ve thought ahead.

How Student-Led ‘Energy Audits’ Are Cutting School Costs (and Lighting the Way Forward)

By Julie Starr • July 14, 2025
What happens when students stop waiting for adults to fix things and start conducting their own energy audits? Money gets saved. The lights get switched off. Data gets analyzed. And a quiet revolution in sustainability begins—inside schools that once overlooked their own inefficiencies. Across the globe, student-led energy audits are proving that change doesn't always need to come from a policy shift or a major capital budget. Sometimes, it begins with a clipboard, a spreadsheet, and a group of curious minds asking: Why are the hallway lights on at noon when sunlight floods the building? The Energy Detectives These audits aren’t science fair projects. They’re rigorous investigations, often done in collaboration with facilities staff, local environmental nonprofits, or even engineering mentors. Students go from classroom to classroom measuring electricity usage, checking for phantom loads , and identifying where heat is escaping in winter or air conditioning is leaking in summer. One high school in Ontario saved over $12,000 a year after its Grade 11 physics students ran an energy audit and suggested simple changes—LED upgrades, motion sensors in bathrooms, and smarter heating schedules. They didn’t just propose ideas. They pitched them with spreadsheets, thermal images, and payback timelines. It worked. Learning That Pays Off—Literally Unlike textbook learning, these audits blend real-world math, environmental science, economics, and persuasive communication. Students aren’t just learning about sustainability. They’re doing it. And the savings add up. From dimming overlit hallways to reprogramming HVAC systems that run all weekend for empty buildings, students are surfacing blind spots that administrators often overlook. In some districts, their findings are influencing energy policy. Elsewhere, the audits have inspired school boards to hire sustainability coordinators—often alumni of the student programs themselves. There’s something poetic about a school funding new books or laptops from money saved by students who found out the vending machines didn’t need to be plugged in 24/7. Why This Matters More Than Ever With education budgets tightening and utility costs rising, every dollar saved is a dollar that can go back into classrooms. And here’s where it gets interesting from a family finance perspective, too. If you’re a parent setting aside money for post-secondary savings, every bit of school efficiency helps. Fewer energy costs might mean more programming, better STEM facilities, or even bursaries. That raises a broader point: when families save for their children’s future, they often look into RESPs (Registered Education Savings Plans). And many wonder—is a RESP deduction available on my taxes? While contributions themselves aren’t deductible, the gains grow tax-free, and students often pay little to no tax when they withdraw the funds during school. A Movement Worth Replicating These audits aren’t just an exercise in environmentalism. They’re leadership labs. Students learn how to spot inefficiencies, speak up in board meetings, and make a business case for change. They don’t just flip switches—they shift mindsets. And they carry these habits into adulthood. The result? A generation growing up not only with climate anxiety, but also with tools to tackle it.