ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

The French cleaning sector has launched an operation against greenhouse gas emissions - reports Christian Bouzols, ECJ’s correspondent.

CarbonArtik sounds like a tortuous name, but in fact it’s a real innovation. Indeed, it’s the first industrial platform to have been launched to fight greenhouse gas emissions and is a brainchild of the French cleaning federation, la Fédération des Entreprises de Propreté (FEP).

Given all the cumbersome regulations that French companies have to contend with, the rise in the price of fossil energy, the halting of climate change, and the requirements of responsible purchasing by businesses, there were good reasons for cleaning companies to subscribe to this tool helping them to control their greenhouse gas emissions. Some 25,000 cleaning contractors, 90 per cent of which are SMEs, stand to gain from this novel platform, specific to their sector, which they can access online.

The CarbonArtik platform was launched recently at the Europropre exhibition which took place in April at the Porte de Versailles exhibition centre in Paris.

Paris launch

It was the first time that a trade organisation had created a greenhouse gas management tool for its affiliates. This platform has been set to help cleaning companies to resolve problems specific to their activities, such as optimising their journeys, making the best use of waste, managing the energy of buildings, and purchasing cleaning products.

Thanks to this platform, members of the FEP now have access to a database and various features to help them reduce the environmental impact of their activities. This platform is based on the Enablon technology, a world leading system of non financial reporting.

This initiative by the FEP enjoys the full support of ADEME, an organisation involved in sustainable development which has produced a ‘guide sectoriel’ informing various industries on the means for them to reduce their greenhouse emissions and on the  impact of these emissions.

Major customers

The handbook was produced over a period of a year with the participation of major purchasing customers from both the private and public sectors (state procurement services, the city of Paris, SNCF, major agribusiness and distribution companies such as Danone and Carrefour, manufacturers and distributors of cleaning equipment, and cleaning contractors).

It’s the first time that all the stakeholders of a business sector have been involved in such a way in an operation of this magnitude.

The project ties in with the 51-point programme of action for sustainable development that the FEP had developed in 2008. It complements the self-evaluation and reporting tool for sustainable development that was launched in 2012 to enable businesses to measure their performance in terms of corporate social responsibility.

FEP commitment

This latest operation demonstrates the FEP’s commitment to sustainable development in making available to its member unique and powerful tools that have been validated by professionals involved in industry, procurement and public services.