Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 25th April 2024 Issue no. 1111
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Cleaning green - Birmingham cleaning company goes electric
We Clean, Birmingham's thriving, privately-owned commercial cleaning company boasting such clients as Brindleyplace, Birmingham Hippodrome, Birmingham Assay Office, MG Motors and Gateley, has taken delivery of its first three electric cars as part of a green commitment to go all-electric with its commercial car fleet.
The three British-built Nissan Leaf electric vehicles will be used throughout Birmingham by We Clean's contract managers.
The move to electric vehicles by We Clean, the £7m turnover company based in Rubery, is part of the organisation's commitment to reducing its carbon footprint and the environmental impact of its operations and vehicle fleet, which has already seen the introduction of an all-electric Nissan e-NV200 van at the world renowned MIRA Technology Park, where We Clean is the cleaning partner to Horiba MIRA.
According to independent research from the European Climate Foundation, smaller electric vehicles produce around 15 tonnes of CO2 from construction through to scrapping, compared to an average of 32 tonnes for the equivalent petrol or diesel car, halving greenhouse gas emissions produced during the lifetime of the vehicles.
Birmingham is expected to introduce a clean air zone from January 2020 and the introduction of electric vehicles is part of the company's internal Environmental Management System, We Clean Green, which is focussed on benefiting clients in the city and exceeding the requirements of the new standards for achieving cleaner air in Birmingham.
"This is the first significant step to achieving our commitment of improving the carbon footprint of our entire commercial fleet of some 20 plus vehicles," reveals We Clean director David Harker. "Our initial focus has been to concentrate on those vehicles serving Birmingham city centre, and its built-up areas.
"It is forecast that the introduction of these three new all electric vehicles will reduce our carbon dioxide output by around 30 metric tonnes during their three years with us, with zero emissions at the tailpipe.
"We know that air pollution - mainly caused by vehicles on our roads - is harmful to those living, working and studying in Birmingham. As a cleaning company, we have a duty to ensure that our processes are as clean and environmentally responsible as possible."
We Clean was established by David along with Paul Concannon in 2003. Last year the company, which has over 500 front-line cleaning staff, delivered 450,000 cleaning hours, cleaning the equivalent of a three-lane highway from Birmingham to Los Angeles - more than 1 billion sq.ft, or 13,000 football pitches.
The company's We Clean Green environmental management system was introduced in 2014 and has resulted in the company reducing its carbon impact through the use of super-concentrated cleaning products, recycled paper products, microfibre technology and chemical free cleaning.
The vehicles which have a 40kWh battery, 150-mile range and produce zero emissions were supplied by Westway Nissan. Brian Bachelor, group corporate general manager, says of We Clean's choice: "We welcome the opportunity to partner with a forward-looking company that understands the benefits of electric vehicles - EVs - both for the environment and also anticipating clean air initiatives.
"With the UK EV market up 18% during 2018, West Way Nissan has invested heavily in our business sales teams, that can advise local customers as to the best products for their business. The three Nissan Leafs supplied to We Clean are a perfect example of this and we would like to thank them for choosing West Way Nissan as their EV partner."
We Clean is an Investor In People business having achieved accreditation in 2012. It is also accredited to ISO 9001 & 14001 and has recently been awarded the OHSAS 18001 for Occupational Health & Safety Management. In 2016 it was National Winner of the Industry recognised Loo of The Year Award. The company is based at Rubery House, Rubery, Birmingham.
Our picture shows the directors & staff of We Clean at Brindleyplace, from left:
Jack Dowdeswell, marketing & social media manager, David Harker, David Holmes-McClure, health & safety manager, Maureen Francis, contract manager, Paul Concannon, director, Debbie Rhodes, contract manager.
28th February 2019