Egger is the first wood-based panel board manufacturer in the UK to be awarded the ISO 50001:2011 standard for its Energy Management System at its Hexham and Barony sites.
Egger has cultivated a well-deserved reputation for its focus on clean manufacturing and sustainability over many years and always strives to be at the forefront of the highest industry standards of the day.
This latest international accreditation achievement is only awarded to those companies who satisfy a rigorous, externally auditing programme and can demonstrate an ongoing commitment to efficiently use energy to further reduce the environmental impact of their activities.
Paul Turner, environmental, health and safety manager at Egger, explains: “As a chipboard manufacturer, operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, our processes are energy intensive.
Gaining the ISO 50001 standard is therefore a major accomplishment for a company such as ours. To underline our commitment to continually improve our energy usage, we took the decision to appoint a technologist specifically for Energy Management. Joan Iborra Rubio has been a key member of the team responsible for successfully implementing this programme and his role will help us to minimise our environmental footprint and our production costs on an ongoing basis.”
Egger is the largest chipboard manufacturer in the UK, producing over a million cubic metres per year. Since 2006, it has invested over £200m at its Hexham site and in the last five years alone has ploughed more than £90 million into highly energy-efficient plant machinery and processes to reduce the plant’s consumption of fossil fuels. This has included a new glue-making plant, a fifth lamination line and the replacement of a second impregnation line, as well as new technology on the chipboard line which enables the company to increase its efficiency and production.
Joan Iborra Rubio, technologist in energy management at Egger, commented: “For myself, it is extremely satisfying to work for such a successful manufacturing company that is so focused on reducing its environmental impact. The ISO 50001 accreditation acts as another incentive for us to continue with our aim to further reduce energy usage and will operate alongside our existing ISO 14001 Environmental Management System.”
To achieve the ISO 50001:2011 standard at both the Hexham, Northumberland and Barony Ayrshire sites, the company worked closely with BM TRADA Certification Ltd.
Dr Keith Jones, lead auditor at BM TRADA Certification Ltd said: “I congratulate Egger on achieving the ISO 50001:2011 Energy Management System Certification. Throughout my dealings with the company I have found them to be thoroughly committed to minimising the impact their activities have on the environment, accreditation to their Energy Management System certainly enhances this commitment.”
The ISO 50001:2011 Energy Management System is an internationally recognised standard that provides a framework for organisations to control, maintain and improve an energy management system. The standard aims to ensure organisations will continually improve their energy performance and promote energy-management best-practice, initiate high levels of energy efficiency, reduce energy consumption and assist in evaluating and prioritising the implementation of new energy-efficient technologies.
