Proving your sustainability credentials has become key in the commercial sector, Glass Express Midlands has announced, and a failure to do so can see you losing out on lucrative contracts.

“Being able to prove that you are actively reducing your carbon footprint has become a key process when being awarded major contracts,” said Glass Express Midlands’ managing director, Arun Photay.

“What’s more, architects and specifiers want to see active measures, not schemes where the results cannot be properly verified, such as carbon offsetting.”

Arun explained that Glass Express Midlands is taking a proactive approach to sustainability with every business decision it makes.

“On the one hand, we do it because we know that it is the right thing to do, but we also do it because we know that it secures business for us,” Arun said.

Glass Express Midlands’ glass offcuts are collected and returned to its glass suppliers, including Saint-Gobain Glass. These are returned on the same trucks that deliver the glass, so lorries aren’t making journeys empty.

By incorporating clean glass cullet from glass processing companies, Saint-Gobain Glass can considerably reduce the amount of energy used in the production of float glass, resulting in a product with a lower carbon footprint.

“This creates a virtuous circle, and we can manufacture sealed units with a much lower carbon footprint, which we then supply to our customers who require a forward-thinking sustainable supply chain,” continued Arun.

The company reduces waste, reduces energy use, and optimising systems throughout the manufacturing process.

For example, the latest optimising software means fewer glass offcuts, and as little as possible is returned to Saint-Gobain Glass as cullet.

“Our ongoing programme of machine maintenance means that each process in the factory is running optimally, and our rejection levels are extremely low,” Arun said. “Our operatives are trained to notice any product errors early on, so remedial action can be taken quickly, and less product is wasted.”

Arun explained that ensuring sustainability is built into every process at Glass Express Midlands results in profitable outcomes, including for the customer.

“They are less likely to return products due to error, which saves time, resources and money – making them more profitable in the process,” he explained. “But it also puts us front and centre when bidding for high profile contracts because we can prove that we are reducing our impact on the environment, while creating opportunities for our customers.”