Let’s Talk About Sustainable Logistics

Logistics makes the world go round. However, our vital sector, and specifically freight/transport services, contribute around 30% of the UK’s carbon emissions.

As such, 3PL providers are focused on implementing practices that enable them to deliver more sustainable logistics and supply chain management services, and pass on the benefits of sustainability to clients.

The Importance of Sustainable Logistics

For 3PL organisations across the sector, the importance of sustainable logistics runs deep. By adapting more sustainable operational practices across both warehousing (bonded and non-bonded) and freight services, 3PL providers can reduce our carbon pollution and offer clients environmentally-conscious 3PL solutions. But there’s much more.

A global focus on all things green, has led to new governmental regulations around facility sustainability, which if met (as we have), futureproof 3PL organisations and enable them to maintain their operations, but if not met, could be destructive to their businesses, and those of their clients.

The Benefits for 3PL Clients

Opting for a more sustainably-focused 3PL partner, can have a number of benefits for 3PL clients – businesses like yours:

• Sustainable logistics helps to lower your organisation’s environmental impact
• Enables you to comply with governmental sustainability-related regulations
• Helps you to save costs via operational efficiency
• Supports applications for bids and tenders
• Positions your brand positively in a sustainability-focused business community and society.

Delamode’s Approach to Sustainability

At Delamode, from the location and design of our facilities to our operational practices, we’re serious about sustainable logistics. We have implemented a large number of environmental measures across 4 key categories: Sustainable by Location (Port Centric Model), Sustainable Facilities, Sustainable Operational Practices, and Sustainable Transport.

Sustainable By Location

Our flagship UK facility is positioned on the Southampton docks. As such, we follow a port-centric model, which helps to reduce unnecessary road miles by up to 20% (cutting carbon from your supply chain), and deliver cost savings of 19% and above.

The port-centric model is a key way we offer a sustainable logistics solution by removing 3 costly steps in the traditional inland warehouse model:

• No need to trunk your products up from the port to an inland warehouse.
• No potentially costly container unloading deadlines to navigate.
• No bringing the empty container back to the port, all the while increasing your costs and unnecessary road miles.

With Delamode, when your products arrive at Southampton port, they can be unloaded with no time restrictions and no risk of incurring fines, before being stored in our flagship facility until they need to be dispatched.

Sustainable Facilities

Lighting & MHEs

Across both of our facilities, in Southampton UK and Roosendaal Netherlands, we use energy efficient, long-lasting LED lighting to illuminate our operations in an environmentally-conscious way, and electric material handling equipment (MHE) to move your goods efficiently and sustainably across each facility.

EPC Requirement-Ready Solar Pannel System

Our commitment to sustainable logistics is perhaps most clearly demonstrated by our Southampton facility’s 467,000 sq ft solar panel system, which at the time of installation was the largest in the UK.

This system not only generates a significant portion of our energy, but future proofs our facility, operations and the smooth service we provide to our clients, in the face of looming governmental EPC requirements. These requirements are likely to cause enormous operational disruption for less prepared warehousing providers, and their clients, like you.

What are the EPC requirements? From 2027, warehouses with an EPC of lower than C will be at risk of incurring significant fines and being deemed unlettable. In 2030, the minimum rating will be increased to a B, a target that will require enormous investment, price increases for clients, and result in operational disruption.

These requirements are projected to make 60% (1.6 billion sq ft) of UK warehousing space unlettable by the end of 2030. At Delamode, we’re ready for 2027, 2030, and long into the future.

Sustainable Operational Practises

Recycling Practises

Warehouses and distribution centres like ours utilise and dispose of a large amount of packaging, making recycling a sustainable logistics essential.

At Delamode, we position bins by our sortation department (where we process and divert goods to the correct location across the warehouse), and use both a cardboard and shrink wrap compactor to create dense bales that minimise the volume of packaging waste, and facilitate easier recycling to reduce the environmental impact of landfill disposal.

Sustainable Packaging

Also on the subject of packaging; whether our clients are shipping products to stores/retailers (B2B), or direct to consumer (B2C), we offer eco-friendly packaging options to help your organisation operate more sustainably.

Paperless Invoicing

Delamode also provides electronic invoicing to reduce our paper usage and minimise our environmental impact.

Sustainable Transport Services

Transport services are the main way in which the logistics sector contributes to carbon pollution across the UK. At Delamode, we’ve tried to make this necessary service more sustainable via optimised route planning order consolidation.

Optimised Route Planning

By optimising the route your products take to your retailers or end consumers, we reduce fuel consumption and emissions, and in doing so, minimise your journey’s carbon footprint and impact on air pollution.

Consolidation of Orders into Our DC’s

Order consolidation is another way we offer a sustainable logistics solution. By combining multiple orders destined for the same retailer or consumer into one single shipment, we reduce the number of vehicles required to make the journey, cutting emissions and minimising the route’s environmental impact.

If we can support you with sustainable logistics services, contact our team today to discuss your non-bonded and bonded warehousing, ecommerce fulfilment, reverse logistics, and transportation needs.