
At
L.O. TRADING CORP, the respect for the environment is intrinsic in our daily routine and operations and is part of our way of thinking.
At
L.O. TRADING CORP:
- We do not produce or transform any tangible goods.
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We provide to our Clients
- Technical Trading services related to Industrial Spare Parts and Raw Materials.
- Logistic Services related to International Cargo Transportation and Inland (USA, Canada, Mexico) Cargo Transportation.
- We perform these activities with the minimum possible impact to the Environment.
Operating Standards related to reduce the environmental impact:
- 1- Reuse the packing material always when possible.
- 2- Recycle the packing material when not possible to re-use.
- 3- Use of Electric Forklifts always when possible.
- 4- Paperless Operation - Responsible schrediing.
- 5- Electricity savings.
- 6- Reduction of Plastic bottles/containers.
- 7- Tap water savings.
- 8- Responsible disposal of electric/electronic devices and scrap.
1. Reuse the packing material always when possible.
The packaging materials used in our operation and the policies about each material are:
1.1. Wood / Plastic Pallets
We re-use any pallet that is feasible to re-use, even when it is possible to repair the pallets with our tools and skills.
1.2. Wood Crates
All remaining wood crates from consolidations are saved and reusedbefore new crates are ordered.
The quantity of wood crates saved is not representative we do not have any record of this operation.
1.3. Cardboard Boxes
We re-use all cardboard boxes when possible.
We reduce to the minimum possible the purchase of new cardboard.
1.4. Shrink wrap
We acquired a wrapping machine with the purpose of reducing the quantity of shrink wrap used in our operation since the shrink wrap is non bio-degradable and expensive to recycle.
Always when possible we use the wrapping machine that is set to stretch the film to 150 - 200% of the original length. This action alone saves between 25 and 50% of the film used and helps to maintain the cargo properly secured.
1.5. Adhesive tape
Adhesive tape to reseal boxes and envelopes is only used when necessary. We acquired a stapling machine and use staples when possible instead of adhesive tape. The adhesive tape is not biodegradable, is expensive to separate from cardboard and paper and makes the process of recycling cardboard and paper more expensive.
1.6. Steel Strap vs Plastic Strap
Our policy with the strap or banding material is to use Steel Strap as the preferred method since this material can be easily recycled and also will degrade itself over time just in presence of oxygen or water.
1.7. Labels
Labels are used when needed in a responsible way, and to the minimum required to identify the cargo and/or alert about any particular situation.
2. Recycle the packing material when not possible to re-use.
2.1. Wood / Plastic Pallets
When not possible to reuse, the pallets are collected and tendered to a third party company that recycles the pallets by rebuilding pallets out of the pieces of pallets that cannot be repaired.
We only buy 2nd hand pallets unless specified by our Clients or when used pallets are not available.
See registry of pallets were we keep record of the quantity of pallets purchased and tendered for repair and reuse.
2.2. Cardboard Boxes
We accumulate the cardboard that cannot be used or re-used in our operation and tender it to a recycling company that brings it directly to the mill for recycling.
See registry or cardboard tendered for recycling.
3. Use of Electric Forklifts always when possible.
Since 2011, we decided to reduce to the minimum the use of forklifts driven by Internal Combustion Motors (LPG) and acquired electric driven forklifts. With the electric forklifts we reduce to the minimum the emission of gases to the atmosphere as well as significant reduction of the noise and the temperature in the warehouse area.
We keep a record of the hours of use of each machine, to guarantee that the warehouse operators are giving preference to the electric forklifts vs the Internal combustion.
4. Paperless Operation.
Since 2008 we started to change our filing system from paper to digital. Before that day we were using over 25,000 paper sheets per month. Now we use paper only in cases where it is legally required, like cargo transportation documents.
To accomplish and maintain this policy we updated all our PCs and installed a second monitor for each employee.
All our process and accounting documents are filed and stored in a digital form, saving not only the paper, but also the printing ink that is a highly contaminant product.
We encourage all our suppliers to send electronic documents (invoices, packing lists, MSDS, Data Sheets, etc), but any way due to the nature of our business we receive an important quantity of paper, after scanned and converted to digital format, all the paper is collected for shredding and recycling. This process is done by a professional company that is contracted for this purpose.
5. Electricity Savings.
5.1. Replacing / purchasing more efficient devices.
Every fluorescent light that burns or breaks is now replaced with LED LIGHTS, both in the offices and the warehouse. This conversion is being done using LIGHTS that plug directly to AC, to avoid the efficiency loses on the transformers, but maintaining the existing fixtures to reduce contamination. We expect a reduction of 50% in the use of electricity for illumination by 2020.
All new PCs, monitors and devices used to process information are "high efficiency".
5.2. If not in use turn it off.
We have sensibilized all our employees about turning off lights and all electric appliances when not in use.
5.3. Motion activated lights.
Motion activated lights are installed in areas of low occupation during the day, so the lights are on only when motion is detected.
5.4. Heat repellent film.
We have installed a special film in all our windows to reduce to the minimum the heat input from the sun, this bring a great reduction in the power consumption at the A/C units.
6. Reduction of Plastic bottles/containers.
We installed water fountains with filtered water in different areas of the offices and warehouse, and encourage our employees not to use plastic bottles.
At the public fountains we use disposable paper cups and do a clean recycle of them to reduce contamination.
7. Tap water savings.
We have installed water saving nozzles in all our tap water faucets to reduce the water consumption. Normal nozzles run 2.2gpm, ours are 0.5gpm. We also perform periodic revision of the toilet gaskets to be sure there are no leaks.
8. Responsible disposal of electric/electronic devices and scrap.
All broken and unusable electric/electronic devices are donated to a recycling company that fixes or takes the appliances apart to use their components as spare parts to fix other similar appliances. All metallic scrap is collected and tendered to a recycler that collects this type of materials. Used printer tonners are send back for recycling with and all batteries are collected and sent to the appropriate recycling places.
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V1 March 21 2016