Successful real-world trials have green-lit the roll-out of reusable packaging units set to cut construction site waste and eliminate 100,000 cardboard boxes from the supply chain over the next two years.
Reusable at least 12 times, the pioneering Geopak packaging unit is being introduced by Whitecroft Lighting, one of the largest manufacturers of commercial lighting in the United Kingdom.
Designed to cut on-site waste and help developers track valuable lighting assets, the innovation follows a highly successful trial with the UK’s largest construction and infrastructure provider Balfour Beatty.
Geopak was employed on the Dunfermline Learning Campus site at Fife College, as part of the biggest pathfinder project undertaken for the Scottish Government’s Net Zero Public Sector Buildings Standard.
Boosting sustainability on this multi-million-pound scheme, Geopak not only saved two tonnes of waste, but also £6,000 in waste management costs, contributing to a net-zero first for tertiary education.
The wins were multiple, explains Jim Brannan, Head of Supply Chain Development, Balfour Beatty:
“What is particularly inspiring about working on Geopak with Whitecroft is that it is not just about recycling or reusing packaging, or even striving to meet a net-zero carbon target. It’s about rethinking and reimagining our processes, and innovating right from design stage and manufacturing of materials, through to construction.”
Modular tote box system with GPS tags
Geopak features a modular tote box system, made from recycled materials, that is designed to securely and efficiently package up to 90% of the entire Whitecroft lighting range.
By maximising space and reducing unnecessary packaging, the Geopak solution streamlines transportation and cuts waste, enhancing sustainability and improving circularity.
Once emptied, the totes fold flat and are returned to Whitecroft, where they can be reused for multiple projects at least 12 times, making the system sustainable, circular and cost-effective. In addition, because Geopak is modular, the totes can be repurposed for various projects and packaging needs.
To prevent misplaced deliveries of valuable products, Geopak features GPS-enabled tags that can be tracked on-site using geofencing to an accuracy of within two to three metres.
This application of digital technology enables developers to track shipments in real time and determine the precise location for efficient on-site storage, stock management, and installation.
The GPS tags also ensure Whitecroft can quickly retrieve the collapsed Geopak totes for reuse in future.
According to Whitecroft, use of the new Geopak system to package and transport commercial lighting components eliminates tonnes of traditional cardboard packaging waste, half of which is incorrectly recycled on-site. It also drastically reduces the need for single-use wrapping to secure boxes on pallets.
Combining circularity with digitalisation
Known for its pioneering sustainable and circular solutions, Whitecroft Lighting designs energy-efficient products that can be refurbished, repurposed, redistributed, and ultimately recycled at the end of life.
Extending these values to packaging and transportation, Whitecroft developed the Geopak system in collaboration with Cardiff Metropolitan University and PDR, a world-leading design consultancy and applied research facility. Geopak enables Whitecroft to map the entire journey from production to installation.
Now adopted on multiple high-profile projects, Geopak appeals to a wide range of stakeholders, from developers, architects and installers, through to project managers and property owners. It provides the ability to offer sustainability benefits, plus track expensive assets, as well as delivering cost savings.
Set to rid the supply chain of the equivalent of 100,000 cardboard cartons over the next two years, Geopak is a gamechanger, concludes Matt Paskin, Solutions and Marketing Director, Whitecroft Lighting:
“Sustainability and circularity are important to Whitecroft Lighting, so we have reduced embodied carbon in our manufacturing and designed products that can be reused and then recycled to minimise end-of-life waste.
“With Geopak, we are taking these philosophies to the next level by combining circularity with digitalisation when developing new buildings or retrofitting existing ones.”
Reducing GHGs across Scopes 1, 2 and 3
Founded in 1945 and based in Greater Manchester, Whitecroft Lighting is one of the UK’s largest public- and private-sector lighting providers, working on education, healthcare, industrial and workspace projects.
All R&D, product design and manufacturing is undertaken at its headquarters in Ashton-under-Lyne and neighbouring 10,000sq m facility. With 350 employees, the company now has an annual turnover of £55M.
Whitecroft Lighting prioritises business and product sustainability by reducing the amount of material in its products and promoting circularity. This model keeps products at their highest utility throughout their lifetime, and then on into their regeneration and recovery, so that the materials remain in circulation.
Whitecroft has ambitious goals to reduce direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). Near-term targets are to cut emissions by 70% in Scope 1 and 2, plus 30% in Scope 3 by 2030, from 2021 baselines.
As a member of the Fagerhult Group — a global network of lighting manufacturers, with 4,900 employees in 30 countries — Whitecroft also has a long-term science-based target (SBTi) to become Net Zero by 2045.
Further Reading:
- More about the Geopak modular tote box system from Whitecroft Lighting;
- More about the Fife College project; and Net Zero Public Sector Buildings Standard in Scotland;
- Also on SustMeme, Eco packaging in flat-out first for organic wine;
- Also on SustMeme, Packaging: cutting plastic and carbon from katsu curry;
- Also on SustMeme, Scottish facility wins £500K grant to support circular cement;
- Also on SustMeme, In the Loop: Construction signs up to tackle pallet waste;
- Also on SustMeme, How can we close the global Circularity Gap?
Check out the full archive of stories on the SustMeme Circular Economy Channel, now available to Sponsor.
