The amount of businesses that are taking great action and responsibility towards establishing themselves as a carbon-neutral company is ever-growing. Of course, this can only be achieved with a lot of changes and investments, and it comes with great responsibility to stay consistent with the measures that it takes to run and continue as a carbon neutral company.

With that being said, one company stands out regarding coming up with new and impactful concepts that will enable them to reach the milestone of becoming fully carbon neutral in the near future.

The water treatment company Merus was founded in 1996, since then they have worked on solutions to make safe and clean drinking water without the need for any chemical additives or processes. A result of their research is the Merus ring. This purely physical device makes it much easier to remove deposits in pipes by increasing their solubility, so they simply run off with the water. That means that no chemicals will be needed to remove or prevent limescale, biofilm, or rust in water pipes.

This new and unique way to combat foreign substances in water without using any chemical products can be applied in running water pipes, industrial applications, or even heat exchangers, which can be kept clean with the help of physics. Merus strives to bring aid to a miscellany of problems around water and fluids such as rust, corrosion, biofouling, limescale, and biofilm.

With this installation, a large number of chemicals that are used for water treatment can be cut out. This is a major step in order to keep the environment clean and removes the need for further processing, which definitely helps the company to become fully climate neutral. To add to that, the CEO of Merus initiated additional milestones to ensure that the big picture of CO2-neutral sustainability can be reached. In 2019, they dedicated themselves to even more measures in order to become truly environmentally friendly.

Sustainability At Merus:

• Reducing Chemicals

As mentioned, one of the biggest factors of sustainability at Merus is the reduced use of chemicals. This is achieved by advanced processes to keep the heat exchanger clean and protect it from fouling and corrosion. By keeping it clean and safe in the first place, there is no need for intense and aggressive cleaning processes which would involve chemicals that are damaging to the environment. Merus has been improving heat exchangers for 25 years and will continue to make them better and greener.

• Sustainable Business Trips:

When it comes to their employees, Merus chooses the route of sustainable travel like train travel over unnecessary flights. By this small decision alone, the CO2 emissions are cut in half and it gives the employees a more relaxed travel experience which even allows them to work during the journey.

• Less Plastic In Packaging:

The plastic pandemic is one of the biggest challenges in the fight against climate change. This is why they decided to change their packaging material to reduce plastic usage.

Packaging is an important issue for both, the producer and consumer, and therefore one of the most important and apparent steps to reduce the ecological footprint of the product. Carbon neutrality means to be more environmentally friendly overall, including the topics of waste, plastic, and shipment.

• Let’s Get Digital

Furthermore, they use the advantages of the digital age. This does not only save money but also paper. Marketing material such as brochures and bureaucratic paperwork such as invoices are only processed and send out digitally.

By reducing the amount of paper used, office waste is reduced and fewer trees are cut down. As forests are, together with the oceans, one of the biggest factors to filter carbon out of the air, it is crucial to protect both ecosystems as much as possible.

These measures are a good starting point on the journey to carbon neutrality and becoming more and more environmentally friendly. Moving forward, Merus will continue to develop new processes that will bring them closer to their sustainable goal.

Important First Steps To Become Carbon Neutral As A Business:

The journey towards carbon neutrality can be achieved through many different approaches. Waste and plastic reduction, the careful choice of suppliers, social engagement, support of environmental research and activism, changes in shipping and packaging and so much more. Depending on your business, your first steps might be unique and can vary from small changes to big moves. But here are three ground rules to get started:

1. Know Your Carbon Footprint:

Before you can efficiently make a change, you need to know your starting point. You will need to look at the big picture from start to end: From your paper and printer usage, transportation, all the way to the supply chain, including the social effects of each and every aspect as well as the process of waste, cleaning chemicals, travel, and both the obvious and invisible emissions. This can be a hard and complex task that needs to be done in complete honesty and without exceptions. Once your carbon footprint is measured out and you fully understood which changes are necessary, you can work on solutions.

2. Reduce Your Impact:

One of the golden rules for climate neutrality is to reduce the impact on every level possible. Often these changes can even save you money, especially in the long run, as they often make your business more efficient when it comes to internal processes, digitalization, and technology. When it comes to third-party factors in your supply chain, you may be required to switch to a more regional supplier that shares the same goals.

3. Mindset:

Becoming completely emission-free might seem like a big challenge for many businesses, especially when processes are already in place for a long time. But this should not stop you from trying. To lower your footprint, even if it does not come down to zero, is already a step in the right direction. The most important thing in this process is a modern, green mindset that prioritizes the environment at every decision, from small to big. To approach the changes with an optimistic and energetic mindset is necessary to evoke the change needed for carbon neutrality.

Why Should You Turn Your Business Carbon Neutral?

The objective of becoming carbon-neutral shows that you as a company are committed to the future and that you have an understanding of the urgency of climate change.

• You Will Save On Costs

For a primary example, you will save thousands in energy costs per year.

When you apply measures and integrate certain changes, co-workers and supervisors will become mindful of how they consume energy in the workplace and it will contribute a lot to saving costs on energy.

• Commercial Success

A sustainably driven business conspires to become more successful in executing a marketing strategy. Today, more consumers want to purchase goods and products and with given surveys, a sustainably driven business leads to returning customers, bigger purchase interest, and seems like a better work environment for new employees.

• Increased Morale

It provokes increased morale with staff, constructs goodwill and a good reputation with shareholders. Furthermore, a sustainably driven management notices brand contrasts in somewhat consistent industries.

• Sustainable Acquisition

Governments will want to intentionally purchase sustainable products and services, this will also motivate more commercial organizations to follow through with this example.

Upon purchasing a product or a service, there are a variety of characteristics of sustainability they will look into. They will mainly look into how energy-efficient, organic, or carbon-neutral the product or service is upon production. Simply put, The more efforts a business puts into reducing CO2 emissions compared to their competitors, the higher the likelihood would be that they want to invest in it.

More businesses and brands are using their voice to become a catalyst for change. By incorporating and showing transparency in their journey to become greener and carbon-neutral, they are influencing and teaching consumers to become educated and motivated into taking the same route. It doesn’t matter whether you have a big organization or a small business starting from the ground up, every effort makes an impact to achieve the goal of a greener future.