Sustainability &
Environmental Policy

Mission

To shape a better world

Commitment

Bank Machine is committed to continuous improvement in manging environmental issues, including the proper management and monitoring of waste, the reduction of pollution and emissions, compliance with environmental legislation and environmental codes of practice, training for staff and the monitoring of environmental performance.

Objectives

Bank Machine will implement practices that promote economic security, social betterment and environmental protection and will strive for continuous improvement of performance in these areas.

To deliver this, the company aims to:

• set a sustainability business strategy;
• be a leader in sustainable development in areas relevant to its business;
• work with its customers to pursue, promote and develop sustainable business outcomes;
• promote sustainable practices;
• hold its performance accountable to its staff through objective measurements;
• report on its sustainability performance and achievements; and
• ensure that Executive Team are involved in the implementation of this policy and in reviewing sustainability performance.

Actions

In meeting these objectives, the company will:
For its core business

• provide value to customers by building upon its reputation for consultation and delivery of the most operationally efficient and cost effective solution possible;
• deliver operational solutions recognised for their sustainability credentials, in line with customer expectations;
• evaluate solutions with respect to their sustainability risks and opportunities and, where appropriate, discuss these with the customer; and
• achieve performance that ensures the company’s economic, environmental and financial viability as well as the safety & wellfare of its employees.

For its people

• employ and retain staff who have a high degree of awareness and expertise in sustainability for all disciplines practiced;
• provide continual education and training for all staff on sustainability & environmental issues relevant to the company’s business; and
• support innovative approaches to the implementation of sustainability strategies on projects.

For its facilities

• maintain management systems to assist with implementation of sustainability objectives;
• aim to use resources efficiently and to minimise waste, usage of water, energy and other consumables in the office environment;
• develop a strategy to move towards minimising carbon emissions in its operations;
• endeavour to prevent pollution within the scope of its activities; and
• develop a strategy for the company to move towards sustainable procurement of the goods and services used in its operations.

For its external relationships

• partner with organisations that practice sustainability and that enable the exchange of ideas and the promotion of sustainability leadership across its businesses; and
• fund and work on community projects that achieve sustainability and environmental goals.

Implementation to date

At Bank Machine, we believe in our people, our customers, our processes and our planet. In order for us to be successful as a business all these elements must be maintained and sustained. It is our commitment to achieve this.

Business Aims

Below is an update on our company aims in order to achieve our goals.

To work with our customers to pursue, promote and develop sustainable business outcomes

Through the on-going development and improvement of our IT solutions, we are now able to offer our customers on-line reporting, whether that be for availability of their ATM estate or the number of transactions carried out over a set period. By doing this, we ensure automated, repeatable deliverables, without having to damage the environment by using paper.

This model is further underpinned by our internal working practices, which show how we use our intranet as an integral communication tool for our workforce, whether they are office based or remote. The intranet is used to share business performance and processes as well as being a media for communication for company social engagements and community projects.

Ensure that leaders of the company are involved in the implementation of this policy and in reviewing sustainability performance

Bank Machine and Green Team have both achieved ISO 9001 status. In order to maintain this high standard, quality and processes must be reviewed and audited on a regular basis. This Sustainability and Environmental policy has been integrated into the Quality Process within Bank Machine. The Quality Process is reviewed by the company directors on a monthly basis and is externally audited every 6 months.

Core Business

Below is an update on our Actions around different focus points in our business.

Deliver operational solutions recognised for their sustainability credentials, in line with customer expectations

Bank Machine has worked tirelessly over the past 10 years to achieve an excellent reputation for customer service and operational excellence. This is reflected in their current business performance statistics and in testimonials from their customers. All of this could not have been achieved without the fusion of excellent people combined with excellent, sustainable & repeatable processes and IT systems.

Achieve performance that ensures the company’s economic, environmental and financial viability as well as the safety and welfare of its employees

At both Bank Machine and Green Team we are committed to the safety and welfare of our employees. We abide by our Health and Safety policy and ensure that everyone is protected or at least knows what to do, should they find themselves in a difficult or dangerous situation. We ensure that this is economically viable by driving through our core business processes to the best of our ability and in a cost affective manner and in so doing dedicating ourselves to continuous improvement.  In achieving this, we bring continuity and sustainability to our business, our customers and our employees.

People

Employ and retain people that have a high degree of awareness and expertise in sustainability for all disciplines practiced.

Bank Machine and Green Team both have excellent retention rates of their staff. At Bank Machine alone, 67% of staff have over two years service and over 25% have over 5 years service. This enables a high level of knowledge and expertise within our teams. This, combined with our pyramid management system gives room for development and promotion of staff, which ultimately leads to job satisfaction and retention, delivering sustainable and repeatable outcomes.

Facilities

Aim to use resources efficiently and to minimise waste, usage of water, energy and other consumables in the office environment

Both Bank Machine and Green Team offices are modern buildings, which make best use of modern insulation systems. Although air conditioning is deployed, it is used at the most economic level possible to achieve the desired ambience within the building, whilst trying to minimise the pollution affect.

We are working towards a greener way of working by trying to minimise printing where possible. Where it is necessary, recycled paper will be used.

With respect to bins, Bank Machine and Green Team already deploy a method of waste separation into recycled and non-recycled waste. They work with the local council to ensure it is disposed of in a manner that supports our environmental sustainability.

What is more, we are always looking to find more efficient ways of becoming more sustainable as a business whilst at the same time conserving the environment. We are currently reviewing the drinking water in our offices and are about to dispose of the plastic drinking cup we currently use in place of a glass, which can then be washed and recycled. As we already use cups and mugs for tea and coffee, we see no resistance to move to glasses.

Endeavour to prevent pollution within the scope of its activities

We are aware that some pollution is inevitable, however at both Bank Machine and Green Team we strive to make our carbon footprint as small as possible. A good example of this is the deployment of low CO2 emission vehicles for our Cash-in-Transit (CiT) runs. We have chosen brand new Mercedes Benz vehicles. Mercedes Benz strives to reduce the emissions from its vehicles, which fits with our company philosophy. We also ensure that any journeys made by our vehicles are pre-arranged in the knowledge that we are taking the most economical route to ensure the lowest fuel emissions possible.

In other parts of our business, where driving is essential, e.g. engineering, we have ensured that every engineer has a pick up and drop off point for spare parts close to their house, so that they are not making unnecessary journeys. The same can be said for the repair process of these aforementioned parts. Instead of sending them to Europe to be repaired, which would be the standard process, Bank Machine ensures it repairs what it can in situe and if this is not possible, it will recycle parts to ensure re-use of parts which might be deemed ‘disposable’ or  ‘irreparable’ by the manufacturer.

External Relationships

Fund and work on community projects that achieve sustainability and environmental goals

Bank Machine has always been an advocate for supporting local sustainable community projects. Over a year ago we contacted Groundwork with a view to sponsoring a local project in Hatfield. It took a while to find the right project. At last, in October 2008, we found the perfect project at Green Lanes School. The aim was to transform their spare ground into an exciting environmentally friendly outdoor education area for the school children. Bank Machine volunteers worked alongside the Groundwork team over two weekends in October to help the transformation to happen and the garden was finally opened in November 2008. The new design includes a series of fruit and vegetable growing beds so that each class can learn about growing healthy food; a range of trees, plants and bulbs planted at the school; a ‘trim trail’ with outdoor exercise equipment; and a re-vitalised pond area with a bridge and dipping platform that children can use in their science and geography lessons. The re-designed pond will mean the children can now use the informal play area nearby that they couldn’t access before.

Bank Machine volunteers are also committed to attending the Friday afternoon garden club, to help to support and maintain the good work.

In a similar vein to the Green Lane School project, Green Team in Harlow are in the process of setting up sponsorship for a local ‘foodbank’ in their town, via the Trussell Trust. This is a groundbreaking concept designed to help individuals and families in crisis by providing free emergency food until the appropriate agencies are in a position to assist.

The aim is to engage with the local community in Harlow, to introduce sustainable projects that enable marginalized people to break through their cycle of poverty. Tinned and dried food is collected from the public at supermarkets, churches, schools and other local groups and "banked" in a warehouse.

Food is then given to people in crisis as a result of referrals from registered care professionals such as Social Services, Health Visitors, and other carers working in the front line.