If you’re like most people, you’re concerned about the environment.
You want to preserve the Earth’s resources for future generations. You are always seeking new ways to conserve, recycle and re-use. It’s likely that you already practice these concepts at home.
Why not employ these same strategies in your small business?
Here are some helpful ways to give your office some more green….
Green Building
The first step in keeping your business green is to use green building techniques.
As the article, “Green building trends for 2015” looks at, include using pre-owned construction materials such as windows, doors and other elements. Even old hardwood floors are being saved from demolition sites so they can be refurbished and used in new construction buildings.
If you’re building your new small business site, consider using engineers and architects that are LEED certified. LEED is the gold-standard for green building professionals.
Energy Conservation
If you’ve ever walked around a city at night, you’ll see lots of office buildings still lit up from within. Though it looks like these office employees are burning the midnight oil, that’s generally not the case.
In far too many instances, lights are left burning to facilitate the nighttime cleaning crews that come in to pick up after the employees have gone home. This is a convenience that simply saves the cleaning crew from having to flip a couple of light switches.
Instead of leaving lights on for a night time crew, consider having the crew arriving during normal business hours to do the cleaning.
That way, the last person out can turn out all the lights before they leave, and you’ll save on energy bills.
Saving Paper
The fantasy of having a paperless office is indeed a fantasy for many businesses that have tried to make this a reality.
The truth is, in most businesses, it’s necessary to print out documents and information so that they can be read correctly. This is especially true in the engineering and architectural industries.
Plans and schematics must be printed on wide-format printers so that they can be followed by contractors and tradesmen.
There are other ways to save on paper in your business, however.
On 8-1/2 x 11 sheets of paper, you can save them, run a diagonal line across the side that’s finished, and then put them back in the copier on the opposite side.
Your staff can print things out on this used paper and not feel guilty about using a brand new sheet of paper.
Temperature Regulation
Just as you don’t want your teenager constantly adjusting the thermostat at home, you don’t want your employees to do so at work.
Drastic movements of the thermostat will use up exorbitant amounts of energy. Install a programmable thermostat at the office.
Keep the working hours temperature at a spot where most of your employees are comfortable. With a programmable thermostat, you can program in a more energy-friendly setting for the nighttime, when no one will be in the office.
Going green not only helps to protect Earth; many of these tips also help keep money in your pocket.
When you go green at your small business, you also save green.
About the Author: Kate Supino writes about marketing and best business practices.