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FMC Technologies 
Name: Sheena JohnstonRole: Environmental Advisor Organisation: FMC Technologies Left: Sheena Johnston Introduction to your business: FMC Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:FTI) is a leading global provider of technology solutions for the energy industry. The company designs, manufactures and services technologically sophisticated systems and products such as subsea production and processing systems, surface wellhead systems, high pressure fluid control equipment, measurement solutions, and marine loading systems for the oil and gas industry.  Above: The FMC site, Dunfermline Named by FORTUNE Magazine as America's Most Admired Oil and Gas Equipment, Service Company in 2005, 2006 and 2008, FMC Technologies has approximately 10,000 employees and operates 23 manufacturing facilities in 19 countries. Why did your business decide to try and achieve Zero Waste? There were a number of reasons why we initially set ourselves the target of achieving zero waste to landfill. We are committed to understanding the impact we have as an organisation on the environment and to taking steps to reduce this. With landfill space quickly running out continuing to send waste to landfill is not a sustainable process and we wanted to look at alternative ways of dealing with this waste. This has included identifying materials which can be reused or recycled and by starting to look at ways in which we can reduce waste actually coming onto site from suppliers. Similarly there are many financial savings to be made, through eliminating the need to pay landfill tax, which is only set to increase, improving the efficiency with which we deal with waste and by identifying ways in which your waste can actually make you money – by making waste a commodity e.g. cardboard/metals etc. How did you start the journey towards Zero Waste? We started by making sure that the target was well communicated throughout the workforce, ensuring people understood what it means, why we have set it and that everyone has a part to play in achieving zero waste to landfill. One of the first measures was to introduce office recycle stations and remove desk bins, again to increase employee awareness and to get them actively involved in waste reduction. How have you encouraged staff to become more involved in environmental issues? FMC Technologies has a dedicated Green Team made up of volunteers from different departments in the company and who all have an interest in environmental issues. The team's main focus is the development and encouragement of environmental issues throughout the workforce. In 2008 they held four main awareness campaigns focused on our environmental targets including achieving zero waste to landfill. Delivery of these included poster campaigns, awareness e-booklets, presentations displayed on plasma screens around the site and a number of competitions e.g. a waste word search for employees kids and a competition to design a slogan to feature on our Bags for Life that were handed out to all employees. What benefits have you got from reducing, reusing and recycling your waste? Environmental benefits include reducing waste sent to landfill and subsequent reduction in impacts from landfill sites on the environment. Increased recycling and reuse of materials will reduce the use of raw materials and all these steps are helping to develop a positive environmental culture and increased employee involvement and awareness of environmental issues. 
Financial benefits have included increased returns from the recycling of scrap metals and also reduced costs associated with the disposal of cardboard and wood waste. Significant savings have been made by our packaging department through the reuse of wood and cardboard packaging materials.Left: Waste is separated What obstacles have you faced in trying to achieve Zero Waste? There are certain waste streams for which it has been a challenge to find alternative disposal routes. For example this includes the disposal of oily contaminated material such as rags / absorbents and food waste generated through our onsite restaurant facility. Other challenges have included the introduction of office recycle stations. It has taken time for people to get used to using the office recycle stations and not having a bin under their desk any more and also in ensuring that office waste is put in the correct recycling bins. What's been the single biggest challenge and how have you tried to overcome it? One of the biggest obstacles we have faced is the fact that historically we have a large number of different waste contractors dealing with different areas of our waste requirements. This has made it a challenge to develop a structured waste management plan and direction for achieving our target. In overcoming this we have made in-roads within the current waste management practices and we are looking at restructuring this, reducing the number of current waste contractors used and working together with them in a more structured way to achieve our target. 
Which wastes do you produce and how do you deal with each one?All of our scrap metals and turnings are sent for recycling through a local scrap metal recycler. Our waste wood material is mainly composed of pallets and packaging materials and where possible this is reused before it is sent to be used as fuel at a local Biomass Plant. The majority of special wastes that we produce are also sent for recycling through our waste contractor including waste oils, controls fluids and solvents. Plastic bottles and drinks cans are recycled through Recycle Fife and plastic cups through Save-A-Cup. Right: Cardboard Baler What do you have left to do before you reach your Zero Waste goal? At the current time a remaining 2% of waste is still sent to landfill and it is our target to reduce this to zero by the end of 2010. We have found that is has been a challenge to find alternative disposal options to landfill for certain waste streams including oily contaminated material such as rags / absorbent materials. Options are being investigated to find alternatives to this, including disposal via energy from waste. A large portion of the remaining waste sent to landfill is generated through our general waste disposal. We are focusing on identifying where on site this material is being generated, improving segregation of waste streams and therefore increasing reuse and recycling, reducing general waste to a minimum. What else have you done to try and improve the environmental impact of your business and staff? We have a number of other environmental projects currently being developed or implemented to help reduce the impact of the company and of employees. This includes a recent planning application that has be submitted for the installation of a 2MW Wind Turbine that will provide renewable energy for the site and other measures that are being taken to monitor and identify ways in which we can reduce our energy consumption. Recycling bins have been placed in the employee car park for recycling of domestic waste. Other projects include plans to reduce water use and the development of an on-site biodiversity area to contribute towards the conservation and enhancement of habitats and species in the local area. We are also currently working with an organisation called Action Sustainability to identify ways in which we can integrate sustainable procurement practices through the organisation and how we can work with our suppliers to reduce the environmental impact throughout our supply chain. Finally, what advice would you give to other businesses considering reducing their waste to landfill? A lot of measures can be taken for little cost, such as running employee awareness campaigns and encouraging their involvement and suggestions on reusing and recycling waste. Speak to your waste contractor and they should be able to help in identifying materials for recycling and in providing solutions for how to set this up.  |
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Wallace House, 17-21 Maxwell Place, Stirling, FK8 1JU Tel: 01786 468 789 Fax: 01786 464 611 |
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