Compostable Plastic vs Recycling

Composting is a form of recycling. Plant based packaging materials (environmental packaging) are recycled into compost which can then be used to grow more plants. Similarly recycling plastics is a resource efficient process where energy can be adequately recovered- there is no need to adopt an either or approach!

As the realisation dawns that we cannot keep consuming without due consideration, it would seem prudent to explore as many options and strategies for reducing our environmental impact as possible. There is no one solution or silver bullet. Different forms of recycling may be appropriate for different situations. For example where collection of plastics is possible and the technology and machinery exists within short distances to reprocess it, this may present an appropriate option.

There are around 50 grades of plastic and currently the UK has facilities to reprocess two of them- HDPE (milk bottles) and PET (fizzy drinks bottles). Often recycling schemes may accommodate the collection of just these two types of bottles to avoid contamination from different grades of plastic leaving a vast array of oil based packaging that does not even have the opportunity of being recycled.

Similarly recycling of paper and card has proved an effective and efficient way of recovering energy. However paper used in food packaging can often be unsuitable for these schemes as the paper will firstly be lined with a plastic and secondly may contain food residue that might contaminate the recycled batch of paper.

Compostable packaging can provide an effective solution and since they are all compostable, the paper, bioplastic and bagasse products can all be recycled together. Furthermore the food residues do not have to be separated either as they are compostable too and will not contaminate the end recyclate. This can prove particularly useful in acting as a tool for the diversion of biodegradable waste away from landfill.

Getting started with Cloud Computing

A friend of mine, John Brookmyre, has recently posted about Amazon's Web Service Database and his first tetntative steps into the world of Cloud Computing.

I'm a bit jealous really as I've been thinking a lot about the applications of cloud computing within the retail sector, but haven't actually taken anything further than initial thoughts. My own fault really, so hats of to you John.

I can think of several ways in which Live Mesh can be useful. I struggled in tha past building an e-catalogue for clothing buyers to take with them on buying trips to the South East. The catalogue functionality was straight forward, but updating the dataset that needed to sit locally on the machine (access to the internet was less than robust in those days) turned out to be a can full of worms.

Back then I could only dream of having a Live Mesh folder synchronised for the buyers so that all they needed to do was be connected to the internet, to receive the latest update.

I haven't really got into the detailed techy bits of cloud computing such as SSDS but another friend of mine, Jamie Thomson has got several examples of SQL Server Data Services he's built. Read about them in his blog, SSIS Junkie.

Biodegradable Plastic

Anyone whose followed my series of posts on Carbon Labelling, Plastic Bags and anything relating to green credentials, will know that I'm more than a little interested in the environment. More interested observer than environmental activist, I would say.

I like to do my bit aswell and the various bins outside the backdoor are testament to our residential recycling effort. Not everything's recycleable though and last week after getting a take-away, I ended up throwing about 7 - 10 little plastic food containers away. It didn't feel right somehow. Not only was I thinking guilty thoughts about the environmental impact but I was worried about how much room would be left in the wheelie bin now we're on fortnightly refuse collections.

"Surely someone can do better than this" I murmed, so I hit google to see what it had to offer.

Interestingly I came across a company offering fully biodegradable 'Plastic' food containers, the advantage being that you can throw them away with the food scraps and it all composts together. Nice. Who hasn't just thrown away a recycleable item before because it's too dirty (or your too lazy) to put it in the bin. Which reminds me of my pet hate about recycling, but more that later...

An extract from their website below

Camden Primary Care Trust and Packaging Environmental have collaborated in an initiative to replace all of the disposable food and drinks packaging at the Trust’s restaurant with sustainable alternatives. Whilst everything has been replaced with high quality plant based materials, the scheme has also involved the collection of all the restaurants packaging, and its disposal into the local commercial composting site. From burger boxes to coffee cups to salad containers, everything is being recycled back into compost and ultimately diverted away from landfill.
The compostable nature of the packaging means that the associated food scraps do not need to be separated out either, but can be collected together with the packaging and similarly recycled into compost.

Corporate Social Responsibility and the economic downturn

Given the unstable nature of the world economy at the moment, how will the latest corporate trend, Corporate Social Responsibility, fair as companies tighten their belts and look to cut costs?

All major retailers have Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) statements proudly displayed on their web sites, and being green and being seen to be green, is high up the agenda in all PR and Marketing departments. Retailers are fighting to have sector leading green credentials with the humble carrier bag thrust into the limelight, centre stage. Corporate Social Responsibility is not just about being green though, it's about promoting sustainability and one of the leading bodies to define standards for business sustainability, the Global Reporting Initiative, defines five areas where business needs to focus;

o Economic
o Environmental
o Human Rights
o Labour
o Product Responsibility

With the price of energy increasing all the time, it's easy to see that focusing effort on reducing your Carbon Footprint, is good business sense, as well as providing good PR material. The green movement has successfully persuaded companies that being green makes commercial sense. However being green is only a part of a companies CSR strategy, so as times get harder will we see a relaxing of the commitments made across the other key areas.

With sales weakening across the high street many retailers will be asking their supply chain to bear the costs of poor trade. Changing payments terms for suppliers and asking suppliers for extra discount are some of the ways retailers can put the squeeze on their suppliers. For suppliers though, struggling with their own increased energy costs, this additional pressure will be most unwelcome and for many, could push them close to the edge.

This doesn't strike me as a sustainable business strategy. Sure, your suppliers will need to bear some of the costs, but the sustainable way out of the downturn would be to work together. How sustainable can it be to destroy your supplier base?

Managing Client Expectations: Deliver and Delight

In my experience of many years of working with clients in the retail industry, I've almost naturally settled on the principle of 'Deliver and Delight'.

Many of the projects and solutions that I've delivered for clients over the years, they could have done themselves, and at a much cheaper rate. I like to think even though the cost in the short term may have seemed more, the client has got value for money, and clearly this must be true to a greater extent or I wouldn't have been successful. So why, when a client can deliver these solutions themselves are they paying external consultants and more importantly, why do they feel they got value for money.

When I say that clients could deliver the projects themselves, there's nothing stopping them of course, but it isn't quite as simple as that.

- They'd need to recruit the right team with a good mix of technical and business skills.

- They'd need to create a culture that allowed ideas to flow and encouraged experimentation.

- They'd need to learn from their mistakes, for they would certainly make a few along the way.

- They'd need to do all this in the timeframe dictated by the opportunity.

Not looking so clear cut now is it....

Explaining the benefits and winning a contract means nothing without delivery though. Delivery stands at the core of consultancy or service provision. My reputation stands on the strength of delivering against the promises that I make. My technical and industry experience allows me to make those promises. Having built the best team allows me to deliver against those promises.

But as I explained in an earlier post on business requirements, to raise yourself above the rest, you need to do more than just deliver. Deliver and delight.

Delight means going further than the deliverables, it means making those years of experience count by doing more. It's delivering the basics and then some. Creating strategic relationships, helping the client shape their vision, bringing in wider industry knowledge, bringing in ideas... I could go on but you get my point.

If your interested in working with an organisation that goes that bit further than everyone else, then get in touch.