How much paper does your workplace use? If like many businesses, paper waste is the last thing on your mind, you may want to change that mindset! The cost of paper soon builds up over the course of a year, making it much more expensive than you might realise. It’s also really bad for the environment.
So, if you want to cut costs and help the environment, cutting down on paper is really going to help. The question is, how can you cut your paper usage down in the workplace?
Clever printing
Printing is one of the leading causes of paper waste for UK businesses. However, there are ways to lower your printing needs. Firstly, get into the habit of asking yourself whether something actually needs to be printed. Could you save it online and refer to it on your tablet, smartphone or computer instead? If you and your employees start to become more mindful of the things you’re printing, it will drastically reduce the amount of paper you’re using.
Another way to reduce printing paper waste, is to make sure you’re using a printer which allows for double sided printing.
Transfer admin online
These days, a lot of admin tasks can be carried out online. Advancements in technology have allowed businesses to digitise a lot of their office tasks, reducing the amount of paper needed to be used.
A great example is HR software. Companies such as Moorepay, provide payroll software especially for medium to large businesses. This allows all of the payroll tasks to be carried out online. Similarly, there’s software available to help digitise many admin tasks today. So, take a look at what’s available and aim to carry out as much of your admin as you can online.
Repurpose used paper
Rather than simply throwing away used paper, why not see if you can repurpose it? If the paper has only been used on one side, you can collect it and then use the plain sides as a notepad. There are actually companies who can do this for you, or if you want to save money it’s easy to do it yourself.
Introduce a paper recycling policy
If your workplace doesn’t currently have a recycling policy, then now’s the time to change that. A lot of the paper which gets thrown away could actually be recycled. So, set up a waste paper recycling basket and aim to start recycling as much as you can.
You could also set up just one bin for paper waste if you work in an office. This will force employees to think more about how much paper they’re throwing away. Make sure if you do introduce a recycling policy, that your employees know how it works. The key is to get everyone onboard with the recycling initiative.
As you can see, it’s easy to cut down on the amount of paper you’re using in the workplace. By following the tips above, not only will you save money, but you’ll also help to protect the environment too.
