Switchgear manufacturer marks a decade of sustainable development change

Added by Love Business East Midlands | 30 November 2023

UPDATED: 30 November 2023

For the last decade Michael Smith Switchgear Limited has been working to develop a modern manufacturing workplace. 

The Leicester-based manufacturer has transformed itself since 2013 - with the key driver being sustainability. 

From achieving carbon neutral status to implementing employee wellbeing measures, there have been a host of developments at the award-winning business.

It has changed processes to increase efficiency and reduce waste, switched to more sustainable packaging, and invested in local woodland.

And a host of wellbeing initiatives - from Lunch and Learn sessions to free fruit for staff - have also been introduced.

In 2021 alone, the award-winning company offset more than 137 tonnes of CO2e across its Group. 

Other measures implemented over the last 10 years have included installing LED lighting throughout its factory, and fitting 284 solar panels to the roof of its building on the Braunstone Frith Industrial Estate.

The team set out with three core areas of focus ten years ago: 

• Creating good jobs
• Protecting our Planet
• Improving Wellbeing.

Huge progress has since been made in every area as revenue has doubled and workforce has grown by 137%. 

Success has brought awards and recognition on a local, national, and global scale. 

Sean Smith, Managing Director, said:

“It’s been amazing to look back and reflect on all of the progress we have made over the last ten years - and to think about how the business looks now compared to how it was when we started this journey in 2013. 

“We’re really proud of everything the team has achieved but we’re also focused on what’s next.  We’ve set ourselves new targets for the next decade, but we continue to maintain that small changes can make a big difference.”

Plans are already in place for the next steps towards further transformation.

Emily Smith, Operations and Finance Director, explained:

“We want to build on what has already been done and we’ve already got plans in place. Our approach to sustainability is not limited solely to the environment, it's about social and economic factors too. We are interested in how UK manufacturing can shape equality, education pathways, and good health and wellbeing for all.”

Measures in the pipeline from 2024 onwards include a new rainwater harvesting and storage system, installing more solar panels and a green roof, increasing the female workforce to 20% over two years, and achieving Net Zero by 2050. 

Click here to read more about sustainable development work at Michael Smith Switchgear.

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