Toby Marlow, Building and Construction team Director, considers Haddonstone’s commitment to reducing its impact on the environment
Extending across a significant percentage of the total roof area of Haddonstone’s Northamptonshire production plant, the solar panel array installed in 2023 has been performing reliably, feeding into the manufacturing processes as well as exporting surplus power to the National Grid. This is, however, only one aspect to the cast stone specialist’s efforts to reduce its environmental impact.
As a founder member of the UK Cast Stone Association, Haddonstone has always adhered to the highest standards of quality control as well as all relevant British and European standards, including the internationally recognised ISO 14001:2015 which requires companies to document and improve their environmental impact. This, of course, includes mineral resource efficiency, biodiversity and landscape, woodland management, and the use of renewable energy.
The efficient solar panels, coupled with the installation of low energy lighting across most of the premises, optimising batch production, and invoking a policy where machinery is switched off when not in use, has resulted in the reduction in the amount of electricity purchased from suppliers. Indeed, Haddonstone was able to sell one third of the energy produced back to the Grid!
Consequentially, the energy monitoring ‘Dashboard’ being employed shows that the investment in clean renewable energy has resulted in a reduction of the Northamptonshire factory’s CO2e emissions of 176.39 tonnes. This is a significant environmental win that – while reducing the load on our ageing distribution grid infrastructure – can also be expressed as saving 70.77 tonnes of coal, or the equivalent amount of the other fossil fuels like oil or gas. Alternatively, it can be calculated that 100 trees would have to be planted to offer the same benefit, steadily sequestering carbon dioxide as they grow.
Solar based microgeneration will further lead to cleaner air and involves no water consumption in their routine operation. According to the Low Carbon Hub: “By reducing their reliance on fossil fuels, businesses with solar arrays can contribute to tackling climate change. It also demonstrates their commitment to sustainability to their customers, staff, and community. This can help give businesses a competitive edge in a world where people increasingly take environmental credentials into account when making purchasing or other decisions.”
Conscious of conserving materials and natural resources
Specifiers and other customers visiting the factory for the first time are often surprised at the levels of craftsmanship and even artistry which are involved in Haddonstone’s work, especially when bespoke items are to be produced; many of them cast in handmade timber moulds. These are repaired and reused for as many repetitions as are practical before the moulds are dismantled. Ultimately, the shredded wood fibres from these are burned as biomass to heat the factory: again, cutting the use of fossil fuels.
Meanwhile, Haddonstone has worked hard to optimise its supply chain, not just in terms of quality and reliability, but also scrutinising the sustainability credentials of the partner companies involved.
In fact, one of the company’s most successful partnerships, both commercially and environmentally, has been with Longcliffe Quarries, located in Derbyshire, for the supply of all its high-quality limestone aggregates. Not only does Haddonstone benefit from dependability of scheduled deliveries which only have to be transported a relatively short distance by road, but the company can also be confident in the supplier’s own commitments to maintaining the landscape and minimising its impact on wildlife, working with a specialist geological consultancy.
Clients can therefore rest assured that Haddonstone’s extensive range of cast stone products not only enhance the built environment, but that their use also shows care for the natural one.
For further information, call 01604 770711 or visit www.haddonstone.com