News in the Channel - issue #11

EXERTIS NDC

Products being packed, ready to be loaded

employee resource groups (ERGs), the first of which were for women of ethnicity and LGBTQIA+. “We’ve asked our ERGs to focus on attracting and promoting talent from the communities that they represent,” Jo explains. “We’ve asked them to work together to drive allyships through the organisation and to create a safe space and a network within those communities. Each of the ERGs has a chair and a committee structure within it. We’ve recently launched our enabled ERG, which is focused on those that are differently abled or neurodivergent. It’s not just about people that identify as part of that community, they have allied work streams within them and we’re also seeing a lot of carers get involved, particularly within the enabled work streams. “There’s been two major things that I’ve seen on the back of the ERG. Firstly, the amount of support I’m seeing people give each other. “The second area I’ve seen a shift is in our celebration and awareness activity. We’ve long been raising awareness, but this has been much more business-driven and HR enabled. We do things like organising panel events, quizzes, we have had external speakers in, and networking events.” Sustainability Sustainability is also key for Exertis, and this can be seen throughout the NDC – and even on top of it. The roof is covered in 6,000sq m of solar panels, which generate 40% of the annual electricity the NDC needs to operate. “To put that into context, we produce enough to power 210 homes,” says Sion. “The solar panels reduce our carbon emissions by 450 tonnes per year. If we’re generating

energy that’s above and beyond what we’re consuming, we pump that back into the national grid, so we do our part for the renewable energy commitment on behalf of the UK. “One thing that is important to us is the impact we have on our local communities and, ultimately, our planet,” says Sion. “This facility is fully supported by motion-activated LED lighting – at the moment there’s no activity, everything powers down. “In terms of saving energy, we’re very committed to our scope one, two and three emissions. Scope one is around fuel, so we’ve got a commitment to transition our fleet cars to EV. Clearly, to transition into EV, we need to support our workers to be able to charge so all our facilities across the UK have got EV charging capability. Here at Burnley Bridge, we’ve got 14 EV chargers.” In addition, the packing process has been optimised to reduce cardboard waste. Carboard packages are mechanically reduced in size to reduce empty space in them, which in turn reduces the space they take to transport – meaning more items can be transported at once – and stops products rattling around inside the package. This is all done through an automated process, leaving products untouched in it. Conclusion All these elements come together to ensure the NDC is giving customers exactly what they need, when they need it. Exertis has invested heavily in this site, but it is paying dividends through its efficiency and means that, as the market continues to evolve, Exertis is well placed to deal with the ever-increasing demand for ecommerce.

Jo Lawrence people director

exertis.co.uk

The roof is covered in 6,000sq m of solar panels, which generate 40% of the annual “

electricity the NDC needs to operate.

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