It’s all too easy to take water for granted when all you have to do is turn a tap on. As a business, though, you have to pay for your water usage and other fees like wastewater discharge fees. This means you can benefit greatly from paying more attention to how much water your business uses overall. In this short post, we’ll look at some of the benefits of making your water usage more efficient and what you can do to get started.
Choosing the Right Supplier
You may not know this, but since 2017 the UK water market has now been open to competition (2008 for Scotland), which means that businesses can choose who they want their business water retailer to be.
If you’re not already in talks with your current supplier, start a conversation around how they can help your business and what additional services they can offer. If you’re not entirely satisfied, you can also choose to change retailers and find a business water retailer that will suit your needs to offer a higher standard of service.
Why it Pays to Be Water Efficient
Increasing your business water efficiency doesn’t just look at how much water you are using and how you are using water. It’s all about reducing water waste rather than reducing use for the sake of it. Of course, that often translates into reduced water usage and decreased costs for businesses.
If reducing costs is what appeals businesses to look at their water in the first place, it’s not the only reason why it should matter to you. Producing clean, drinkable water takes a lot of effort (more than some people may think), which uses resources and produces CO2. By ensuring that you reduce water wastage and water usage where possible, you contribute to protecting the environment and reducing CO2 emissions. Something all businesses should look into – there is no contribution too small!
Water Efficiency for Businesses
There are many solutions to improve water efficiency, depending on what type of business you run. Still, whether you have a large manufacturing plant or are office-based, anyone can benefit from changes.
Some of the areas investigated typically include inefficient processes (i.e. devices continually spraying water) and wasting water in the form of leaks. Recommendations are then made to change processes and sometimes machinery or equipment where required. Reusing wastewater is also an important part of the process. This reduces trade effluent charges and improves the reliability of the supply while reducing demand for freshwater.
Getting Your Employees Involved
Having processes and equipment in place is great, but you’ll only reap the full benefits of the changes if your employees are on board. Make sure that all new processes are explained in detail to everyone so that your team is aware of changes and new practices. If new equipment has been installed, take the time to train employees as necessary, so they know how to use it correctly.
If you run an office, you may think that there is not much that your team can do, but small actions can quickly add up over time and make a big difference. Some of the things you look into could be installing water-efficient toilets and washroom facilities, having flow reducers on taps, or ensuring that leftover water gets reused to water the office plants.
Most water retailers will offer water efficiency advice and support to help your business if you are interested in improving your water efficiency. If you have no idea how to get started, your best bet is to talk to your water retailer. A thorough audit will usually identify areas of improvement, and you can then go from there.
For more business advice, head over to the moneying, strategizing or entrepreneuring sections of our site.
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