Putting a brake on consumption
September 1st 2011

Most people today are striving to cut consumption and reduce waste in a bid to aid the environment. Mark Riley of Tork wiper manufacturer SCA explains how an efficient dispensing system can reduce workshop waste

Over recent years it has become second nature for us to avoid overconsumption wherever possible. As the concept of sustainability gains greater ground we have all begun to realise the need to reuse and recycle whatever we can to reduce waste and increase efficiency.

But wastefulness is still all too common in the industrial sector, particularly where staff are using disposable wipers.When supplied with a loose roll of paper or a wall-mounted centrefeed roll, for example, it is tempting to take out more paper than is needed to save time going back to find more later. And if an operative has dirty hands – as is often the case in industrial premises – the rest of the roll may become contaminated and therefore unusable.

Loose wiping rolls are often considered to be the most economical choice in the workshop, but these are constantly being exposed to dust and humidity in the environment. They are also prone to rolling on to the floor where they will quickly become soiled. This increases the possibility of at least part of the roll becoming contaminated and unfit for use. And loose rolls may also be pilfered, of course.

At SCA we recently carried out a site survey on a sample of industrial workplaces to find out the extent to which wipers were being wasted.

We came across old dispensers with cracked hoods that allowed the wipers inside to be contaminated. In several cases we found wiper rolls abandoned on the work surface and in one case an oil can had spilled and the lower half of the wiper roll had soaked up the mess, rendering the entire roll unusable.

This type of situation can be avoided with the aid of smart dispensing systems designed to protect the wipers inside and minimise over-use. For example, the Tork Performance W4 wall-mounted dispenser presents cleancut wipers one at a time which makes it an extra effort to take out more, while the Tork Performance centrefeed roll dispenser has an optional 'brake' function to prevent long lengths of paper from being pulled out at a time. A key-lockable dispenser with a tightlysealed casing, such as the W4 system, will also protect the wipers from contamination and pilferage.

Sometimes it is not the dispensing system but the wiper itself that can result in overconsumption.

For example, an operative may waste large quantities of flimsy paper trying to clean a rough, abrasive surface when just one durable wiper would have achieved a better result.When using solvents, too, much of the solvent will be wasted if the wiper used with it is slow to release the liquid on to the wiping surface.

Non-woven Tork Premium 530 has been developed to soak up solvents effectively, then release them efficiently back on to the wiping surface. Reducing solvent use makes good sense from a cost point of view as well as an environmental one, since some solvents have been found to increase the greenhouse effect and exacerbate the harmful effects to the ozone layer.

Impregnated wipes can also reduce consumption of cleaning fluids since these come pre-soaked with the right amount of detergent or disinfectant. Tork surface cleaning wet wipes, for example, are impregnated with a dermatologically-tested detergent that will clean away oils and grease from industrial surfaces. The fact that the wipes are housed in a tightly sealed plastic bucket means the wipes remain free of contamination and none of them dry out before use.

In some cases it is not the disposable wiper or the solvent that is likely to be wasted, but the operative's own time. In our site survey, for example, we discovered that in some workshops, wipers were very difficult to find because they were hidden in cabinets or not immediately visible.

This situation can be rectified by positioning highly visible dispensers in fixed positions around the workshop so that staff will be able to spot them and avoid wasting time hunting around for a wiper. The Tork Performance range, for example, includes several wall-mounted dispensers that have bright red housings to allow them to be easily spotted.

Preventing over-consumption and waste in the workshop makes sense both from an environmental and an economic point of view. By equipping industrial premises with smart dispensing systems that are designed to protect disposable wipers and limit their consumption, companies can increase their sustainability – while also reducing costs.

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