November 2006
Aggregate Industries receives BSI Award for it's
commitment to the Environment
A leader in the construction and building materials sector,
Aggregate Industries UK Ltd, has been awarded the prestigious
national British Standards Institution (BSI) award for ‘Most
Innovative Organisation’ in recognition of its commitment to
environmental management across its operational units and
contracting divisions in the UK.
The awards, convened by the BSI to celebrate the 10 th
anniversary of ISO 14001, the international standard for
Environmental Management Systems (EMS), were presented on the 28 th
November by Ian Pearson MP, Minister of State (Climate Change and
the Environment). Aggregate Industries was highlighted by the
judges as a shining example of an organisation which has reaped the
rewards of implementing ISO 14001, both from a business and an
environmental viewpoint. The company was also nominated in the
‘Best Large Organisation’ category. Mike Low, director of
British Standards, said: "It is very encouraging to see
organisations like Aggregate Industries taking environmental
responsibility seriously and gaining a business advantage in the
process.
“Aggregate Industries impressed the judges with the way it has
gone beyond minimum requirements on issues such as biodiversity and
has integrated environmental issues into its suite of products
through recycling and recovery of materials and eco-design."
Commenting on the award, Dr Miles Watkins, director of
environmental & corporate social responsibility for Aggregate
Industries, said: “Aggregate Industries has been working on its
Environmental Management System (EMS) for 10 years and we are 90%
certified to ISO 14001 in a business turning over more than £1bn in
the UK. We believe this is unique for a business in our sector, and
certainly for a company of our scale and geographical
distribution. “Our Business in the Community Corporate
Responsibility Index score of 100% reflects that we manage our
environmental issues well, and so this prestigious award from the
BSi is the icing on the cake in such a milestone year – a decade
since we began the EMS process and since ISO 14001 itself was
conceived. “Although the business has grown considerably through
acquisition from a turnover of £600 million in 1997, we have been
able to maintain almost universal ISO 14001 certified EMS with
approximately 250 operational units and our Contracting business
now registered.”
The development and implementation of Aggregate Industries’ ISO
14001 EMS is driven from Board level right down the line to all
factories and quarries, with annual reporting of the company’s
sustainability performance in existence since 2000 and biodiversity
being a major part of its UK environmental programme.
Aggregate Industries has also set a voluntary target for
reducing its carbon dioxide emissions– 12% per tonne production
from the 2003 baseline by 2010. The company is well on its way to
achieving this.
The ISO 14001 EMS has resulted in a number of initiatives which
have had a positive impact on Aggregate Industries’ sustainability
progress and overall business performance. This includes:
EMS
procedures for contractors and suppliers;
An
Ethical Trading Policy;
A
Sustainable Construction Marketing Group to bring sustainable
branded products and services to market;
Active participation in supply-chain policy and professional
groups;
An
EQMS to align systems for environment and quality assurance;
Effective management and protection of the environment at a
local level, to reduce the environmental impact over the full
life-cycle of its products and services, including the restoration
of extraction areas to high standards;
A
new initiative to support The Wildlife Trusts in the BBC Breathing
Places campaign;
The
supply of locally sourced and manufactured construction materials
to local markets;
Increased use of recycled and secondary materials to reduce
the impact on natural resources and divert waste from landfill;
Reduction of vehicle emissions and transportation by rail
where possible;
Improved efficiencies at operational sites to reuse and
recycle products back into the system.
Open to all UK organisations - public and private sector, large
and small - with ISO 14001 certification, the awards were supported
by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Department for
Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Environment Agency
and the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment
(IEMA).