Influencing Environmental Change Q&A

Blog-June 14, 2022

Introducing our NEW ECO & Social Value Calculator.

WHY, WHAT & HOW – We catch up with Welfare Hire’s Commercial Director, Andy Grayshon, to examine the key drivers behind the development of our new online, net-zero carbon measurement tool…

As we take the next step on our ongoing journey to net-zero carbon, we look at the rationale behind Welfare Hire’s new, industry leading initiative.

What has driven your net-zero carbon strategy to date?
From the outset, we recognised a demand in the market for more modern ECO welfare units with the ability to mitigate traditional fuel and generator power, as well as to optimise onsite facilities. As such, since the launch of our first, uniquely designed mobile ECO welfare unit, the ECO7, 10 years ago, we have continued to invest in developing our fleet of innovative, eco-friendly mobile welfare and lighting units. More than anything, we recognised that supporting our clients to achieve their ESG goals is intrinsically linked to improving overall site setup. So, investing in our fleet and advancing our green technology can play a huge part in this. Conscious carbon planning and elevating welfare provision are now central to our client’s ESG agendas. We have a responsibility to help them achieve this.

How long has the calculator tool taken to develop?
We have been meticulously logging site volumetric data for over two years now and latterly, with the introduction of digital telemetry, we have bolstered this empirical data. It’s been a long process but by collating verified site data from hundreds of clients, thousands of projects and over half a million site days, we are able to demonstrate how our units perform in reality as opposed to in theory. This is what informs our calculator and whilst we know we continue to develop further, we are confident it is already a highly useful tool, which will make a significant impact for our clients both in terms of achieving their ESG goals, improving site performance and ultimately, saving costs.

Why did we think there was a need and has it been worth the time & investment?
We recognise that there are many great ideas and initiatives around site setup for welfare and lighting, involving various forms of technological developments. However, with such an array of options, it can often be difficult to compare and contrast these options, especially in terms of live site performance rather than theoretical projections. This is something that resonates with our client base as they look increasingly to implement, record and review their deliverables around carbon offsetting and other ESG goals onsite. As such, we can see a clear link between developing our ECO & Social Value Calculator, which is based on empirical data from live projects, and adding value for our clients’ needs.

Is anyone else in the sector doing this at the same level?
With over 0.5 million days and counting of actual project site data, we have found that we have been able to collaborate closely with several key partners to provide tangible benefits and savings for their projects, as well as help them demonstrably engender delivery of their carbon and ESG goals. As such, our clients are finding our ECO & Social Value Calculator is currently leading the way for smart site welfare provision measurement.

What kind of data is behind the functionality?
All of our empirical data has been collated from various client project sites across many months and years in order to aggregate a true and fair reflection of “real-life” scenarios as opposed to theoretical projections. This, in turn, has then been compared to the general “par for the course” in the market supply chain, based on consulting with key clients and their own data.

How accurate is it as a measurement tool?
Whilst each project will always have its own nuances around working patterns and throughput, we have amassed enough global data to provide a very realistic summary of what we are seeing our units produce on a daily basis, week in, week out across infrastructure and construction sites.

And what do clients think? What has been the initial feedback on the pilot trials?
So far, the feedback from our client base has been super-positive. The consensus is that it’s a genuinely useful tool, not only to scope their projects and the numerous benefits and savings from working with our unique fleet of ECO units, but also to help them standardise and develop best practice across the business. All of this, of course, feeds directly into achieving deliverables on carbon and wider social value and ESG targets. As one partner advised us recently: “there has been a real shift from talking about carbon targets to actually doing something about it now.” With the largest and most modern fleet of mobile ECO welfare and lighting, along with this tool, our clients have the ability to make an immediate positive impact from today.

Use our ECO Calculator to see how we can unlock significant savings for your project from today.