Called PREMICE, the initiative will be launched on July 17 at the Moat House hotel, Stoke-on-Trent. The Environment Agency says that companies which implement a waste minimisation programmes such as PREMICE, could regularly achieve net cost savings of at least five times their disposal costs. For example, a company with profits of 200,000 per year and waste costs of 120,000 per year could increase its profits by 12% if it reduced its waste costs by 20%.
The Agency calculates that on average, the value of the large quantities of clay, glaze and other raw materials lost in a company’s wastes is much higher than its disposal costs. The Agency says that the further along the manufacturing process the waste arises, the more significant the loss Most wasted product occurs after firing when nearly all the labour and energy costs have been incurred In practice, the cost of waste is likely to be at least 20 times the waste disposal costs
The initiative has been set up by the Environment Agency, Envirowise, Groundwork Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Business & Environment Network (SBEN), with the support of the British Ceramic Confederation.
PREMICE is based on the Envirowise Good Practice Guides on reducing solid waste, water use and effluent disposal costs. It will begin in September 2001 and will run for approximately 12 months. Companies joining the initiative will receive a starter pack, seven half-day training sessions, a baseline audit, up to three half-day onsite consultancy assistance sessions, a placement student and access to a SBENs helpline.
SMEs (companies with less than 250 employees) are the principal target for the scheme, although larger companies are also welcome to join. It aims to recruit up to two delegates per company from up to 15 companies. As the majority of Britain’s whiteware ceramics companies are based in and around Stoke-on-Trent, the initiative will concentrate on North Staffordshire. Whiteware ceramics manufactures or suppliers of materials located outside this area are still welcome to join the scheme.
The joining fee per company (limited to two delegates) is 100 for SMEs and 250 for non-SMEs.
For details, contact either Nigel Barrett, EBS Co-ordinator for EBS Groundwork Stoke-on-Trent, tel: 01782 411000 or Beth Gronow, Tactical Planning Officer for the Environment Agency on 01543 404964.
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