To ensure sustainability was at the fore of this process, SPIE UK has partnered with Reyooz, a company that supports office clearance by donating furniture and appliances to charities, non-profit organisations and schools for them to re-use what they need.
Thanks to this initiative, 20,075kg of furniture and office equipment were prevented from going to landfill, which equates to 78,814kgs of embodied carbon for a total value of £184,670 worth of goods being reused. Although some items are recycled, the focus is on reuse, especially as all the energy and carbon invested into products when they are made is lost when SPIE recycles them, not so when they are reused.
Clémence O’Connor, SPIE UK CSR Manager, said: “Seeing our furniture finding a second life in local schools and non-profit organisations is rewarding and fully embraces our approach to waste and helps reduce our impact on the environment.”
SPIE UK has donated a range of items from chairs, tables, sofas, cabinets and pedestals to printers, fans, projectors and much more. These have already found new homes with 12 beneficiaries such as primary schools, nurseries, community areas and non-profit organisations. Notably, most of the company’s desks are now being reused at CECOS college in Birmingham, K-Gems Day nursery in Edmonton Green have benefitted from four immaculate Boss design Kruze chairs and FPS Flooring, a small family business specialising in hardwood flooring in Bruntwood are enjoying comfortable canteen booths.
Justin Robinson, CEO from Reyooz said: “With so many perfectly good items going to waste each year, it was great to be able to support SPIE with their London office clear out and find new homes for a wide variety of furniture and electronic equipment. It was apparent that SPIE’s values aligned with ours in terms of helping clients meet their sustainability targets, which is why we were pleased to have assisted SPIE with theirs and hope to continue to do so in the future.”
