SafeSourcing Blog

Today’s post is from Steven Schwerin an account manager at SafeSourcing

The word ‘externality’ probably occupies even less.  An externality is an effect of a purchase or use decision by one set of parties on others who did not have a choice and whose interests were not taken into account, or so says About.com.  A more general definition of an externality is merely an unintended consequence. 

Like it or not, what you chose to purchase affects those around you even your choice of roofing material.  For those who don’t like shades of grey in their decision making, reading the rest of this post is going to feel good.  You basically get two color choices when installing commercial roofing; there isn’t much in between.  I’m going out on a limb and assuming that, like me, a large percentage of the general population does not know that commercial roofing material is regularly installed in the color white.  When I think roof, I think tar, gravel and really, really hot.  Largely, this is an unintended consequence of the black, tar roof absorbing solar radiation.  It is easy to assume that large, flat commercial roofs will be covered in tar and gravel, but a white TPO or EPMD roof, on the other hand, is quite common and reflects large quantities of solar radiation back from whence it came.  This difference affects not only you, but others who use your building and even the environment around your building.  

I witnessed this externality first hand in one of my favorite apartments.   I lived for two years on the second story of an old commercial building in a small, Midwestern town.  As great as the building was, the place was a little difficult to live in for one reason, the temperature.  It was scorching hot during the summer and biting cold during the winter.  Leaving Jack Frost aside for the sake of this post, the summer might have been a different story if the owner had chosen white EPMD or TPO over the traditional black variety when she replaced the roof a year or two before I moved in.

I have been up on that roof multiple times to witness the heat-sink effect of black roofing material in the summer sun.  Interestingly, it could have been different.  The excess heat was a consequence of the decision made by someone else, and hence are an externality, affecting everyone who rents that apartment who didn’t make the decision.  The extra heat added close to ground level in the city during the summer months also affects people who did not make the decision.  Finally, the extra energy it takes to cool the building during summer consumes more of the world’s finite resources which affects us all.  So, how much of a difference does a white roof make?  These claims differ from manufacturer to manufacturer, but white rooftops are often 70 degrees cooler than normal roofs during the summer months.  Not only does this heat not get transmitted into your building, but it also keeps the air around it cooler letting your rooftop HVAC units run off cooler air netting you energy savings there as well.  The timing could not be better for your pocketbook either.  These energy savings come during the middle of the day when energy prices are at their peak. 

Your procurement professional is in a position to help you minimize externalities and save you money in the process. Please contact a SafeSourcing customer services account manager if you’d like help with your sourcing needs.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments

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Today’s guest post is from Sarah Kouse an account manager at SafeSourcing.

Switching over from fluorescent bulbs to LED bulbs can definitely save you energy, money, and time. In this blog post, I will explain the reasons why it will save you energy, money, and time just by making the switch.

First, switching from a fluorescent bulb to LED on average saves nearly half the wattage that normally would be used. For example, a High-Output fluorescent bulb that uses 54 watts of power, using an LED Tube (fluorescent replacement) bulb, it uses around 36 watts of power.

Not only do LED bulbs use less power, but they also last longer, they don’t flicker when they are about to burn out, don’t have to “warm-up”, and they don’t get hot while being used as well.

Typically fluorescent bulbs last up to around 20,000-30,000 hours and an LED bulb lasts up to around 50,000-60,000 hours. This will not only save you money because you won’t have to change them as often, but it will also save you time because you won’t have to change them as often.

Switching a fluorescent light fixture to LED is a simple retrofitting process and the cost is very low for the overall outcome you will receive switching to LED.

Yes, LED bulbs are ultimately more expensive at the initial purchase, but the perks of saving money on the electric bill, saving energy and helping the environment, saving money with not having to purchase bulbs as frequently, saving time by not having to change the bulbs as frequently, and just the overall features of the LED bulbs, make it a huge savings and better value.

Contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative today to see how SafeSourcing can help source your switch to a “Greener” alternative.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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This post is for her and a good place to get started before her customers find out.

For guidance with your green purchasing practices, look no further than to our federal governments Environmental Protection Agency or EPA.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a number of programs that as a result of government use offer companies a great opportunity to educate themselves in support of their social responsibility initiatives.

One of those programs, the Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP) helps the federal government “buy green,” and in doing so, uses the federal government’s enormous buying power to stimulate market demand for green products and services. Geared first to help federal purchasers, this site can help green vendors, businesses large and small — and consumers. Use the easy index to:
 
• Find and evaluate information about green products and services;
• Identify federal green buying requirements;
• Calculate the costs and benefits of purchasing choices;
• Manage green purchasing processes.

The U.S. EPA website www.epa.gov contains a wealth of information relative to finding and evaluating green products in any number of categories from construction to office supplies. If you truly review and evaluate the green portion of your company or individual social consciousness regularly the  U.S. EPA site is a great place to start.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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Today’s post is by Ryan Melowic Director of Customer Services at SafeSourcing.

One potential concern that companies may have when deciding to go the sustainable route with packaging is whether or not it’s an economically viable decision for their company. Companies who choose to focus on the monetary rewards of packaging may find themselves sorely disappointed. Companies don’t want to sacrifice the quality of their products. They also want to ensure their packaging is modern and in step with growing environmental concerns.
It isn’t just the packaging itself that causes concern in some companies. The way the packaging is made also makes a difference in its ability to be labeled sustainable. Companies interested in eco-friendly packaging will aim for packaging that is not only designed responsibly but is also made using an environmentally friendly approach. For example, the best packaging would be created using renewable energy. Recycling is also important, and biodegradable packages or packages made from recyclable materials provide the greatest benefit to the environment and world.

Fortunately not every sustainable packaging material is expensive or difficult to procure. There are still many packaging materials that do an excellent job, but are not as costly to the environment. The right materials are also not too costly to businesses and their customers.

Contact a representative at SafeSourcing and we can provide more information on a solution and an approach to a cost effective process for sustainable packaging.

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Today’s post is by Ryan Melowic Director of Customer Services at SafeSourcing.

More and more companies are discovering that a growing segment of their customers are interested in environmental issues and would prefer to buy from companies that take global environmental threats seriously. This has caused a new generation of graphic designers and company designers to re-envision packaging design.

Companies are learning that packaging doesn’t have to be environmentally destructive. There are various techniques and methodologies that companies can employ to create sustainable packaging. More packaging companies are starting to realize that it’s worth the effort to build their packaging based on ecologically sound principles. Of course, not every company is deciding to apply ecological principles because they feel morally compelled. Some companies are simply under more pressure to create packaging because of government organizations like the Environmental Protection Agency.

New developments in sustainable packaging are pushing the idea of environmental responsibility combined with packaging to the forefront. Some environmental companies are working on new technologies to make environmentally responsible packaging the norm. For example, the company Ecovatice, recently began to create packaging made from materials that come from agricultural byproducts. It isn’t just Ecovatice that is using the power of agriculture to bring eco-friendly packaging to the world. Another company called NatureWorks LLC is working on generating plant-based plastics. Sustainable plastics are derived from plants and would have a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

Contact a representative at SafeSourcing and we can provide more information on a solution and an approach to a cost effective process for sustainable packaging.

Check back tomorrow to learn more about Sustainable Packaging in Part II

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