On track with Speedy for sustainability
13 July 2021
Prospective suppliers bidding for major public sector contracts above £5m a year must commit to be net zero by 2050 under new Government measures.
Companies need to have policies in place by this September, as reported earlier on the blog here.
The new rules also require the monitoring of 'Scope 3' or indirect emissions from sources such as business travel, transportation and waste. This also applies to a company's sub-contractors and suppliers.
In this light, Speedy says it is supporting track maintenance and renewal contractors across East Anglia in meeting such sustainability targets, after opening a specialist rail service centre (above) near Bury St Edmunds.
The facility provides low-emission tools and equipment to contractors operating across Cambridge, Peterborough, Norwich, Ipswich, Essex and the wider region.
The centre is supporting a Stratford-based contractor, 1stinrail, to shrink the overall carbon footprint of its projects, in order to meet Network Rail’s 2021 target for fossil fuel-free sites (again highlighted earlier on the blog here).
The contractor is hiring a variety of sustainable battery-powered assets for rail welding, track placement, renewal and maintenance projects. Sourcing this locally reduces mileage in its supply chain: previously, specialist equipment would come from providers in South Yorkshire or the West Midlands.
Daryl Doherty, director of rail at Speedy, said: “The Anglia region’s rail contractors have historically been underserviced by hire providers with equipment having to travel so far to reach them. This has put them at a disadvantage for achieving environmental targets due to the emissions associated with high levels of delivery miles.
“Supporting sustainability in the supply chain is critically important to us, with the location of this depot being equally as important to the significant range of eco equipment we’re providing.
“Many rail contractors’ contracts are still in their infancy, and are bound to the industry’s sustainability goals, so it will be crucial for their projects to meet carbon savings in the near term,” he added.
Network Rail’s sustainability targets are to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 46% and absolute Scope 3 emissions by 28% by 2029, as well as ensuring 75% of its suppliers have science-based targets by 2025.
The implications of sustainability are profound and, as the Site-Eco section of the blog highlights, hirers have a key role to play.
