Building Maintenance and Environmental Sustainability

12 November 2012
By Jeff Anderson

To us, building maintenance and the provision of specialised services is just one aspect of doing a job right. Whether we are providing concrete cancer repair, applying fire sprays, or laying a new industrial floor, in our eyes, environmental responsibility and sustainability measures must be factored into the job specification.

To our way of thinking, what use is there in repairing a building structure if all we are doing is polluting and ruining the environment in which it exists. If we dump chemicals in the garden beds or down the drains, if we don’t separate and recycle different waste streams or if we don’t look to use products which have minimal waste/affect on the environment, then we are doing only half the job we should on each job.

Since 2005, Remedial Building Services has been independently audited and accredited in accordance with ISO 14001:2004 – Environmental Management Systems Assurance. This recognises that not only can we talk the talk regarding our environmental credentials, but that we also walk the walk. On our job sites, we will perform most – if not all – of the following assessments/practices:

• Environmental impact analysis
• Waste stream analysis
• Recycling
• Use of sandbags, eco-mesh and other water bunding devices
• Safe housing (in bunds) of liquid chemicals
• Use of products which have little wastage
• Correct disposal of waste contaminants
• Collection of disposal dockets to show correct disposal

Protecting your building is but one part of the puzzle to us. The other is ensuring that the built environment contributes to a safe, healthy and sustainable green planet. When you are next having work done on your property – whether at home or at your place of employment, make sure your service provider details for you how they will undertake the work in an environmentally responsible way.

If you would like further information on our environmental credentials or on our practices, or if you have further ideas for us, please contact us on add to the comments section below.