Environment
Our commitment to be as environmentally efficient as possible is one we take very seriously at Allight. We realise that to remain a leader in our industry, we must also be a leader on the environmental front.
We've got a number of environmental initiatives underway, including:
Turtle-friendly night lights for Barrow Island
In response to concerns about the effect of artificial light on Barrow Island's flat-backed turtle population, we're developing a wildlife-friendly mobile lighting system for use on the Gorgon project.
Read more
Engine emission compliance
Perkins Engines, distributed exclusively by Allight in Australia, is developing a new generation of engines to meet the stringent emissions regulations that will be introduced in 2011.
Read more
We'd also like to offer a few tips on how we can all make small changes and smarter choices to better our environment, tread more lightly on our planet and help to restore the earth (without forgoing progress, prosperity, development and deodorant);
Be Tree Free
Where possible, create a tree-free home and workplace. The paper-less office may not be here quite yet, but there are steps we can all take to reduce our consumption - and wastage - of paper and other tree-derived products. Replace paper napkins and cleaning wipes with cloth, resist printing emails and documents in favour of saving to your computer, post a 'no junk mail' sign on your mail box, read your news and magazines online rather than in print, and consider alternatives to wood furniture and construction materials. Where you do use paper and tree products, opt for recycled and/or sustainably sourced.
At Allight, we have a dedicated paper-reduction programme and encourage our staff and partners to 'think before you print'.
Grow Your Own
Approximately 25% of the 19 tonnes of carbon per average Australian comes from food. The less your food has travelled, the less impact on the environment. And the least travelling your food can do is when it comes from your own backyard or your Community Garden!
So skip the diatribe on rising grocery prices and grow your own fruit, veggies and herbs instead. Not only will you be saving money and getting your kids interested in eating veggies, you'll be cutting out harmful chemicals, greening your immediate environment, cutting unnecessary packaging and saving carbon emissions from food transport. The fruit, veggies and herbs you eat will be fresher, more flavourful, and full of nutrients often lost in cold storage, freezing and shipping.
Not everyone has enough space to sprout an orchard, but you can always grow fresh herbs on your kitchen windowsill and plant tomatoes, capsicums, peas and other small veggies in pots on your balcony. If you can't grow your own, at least always aim to buy local produce in season.
Think Global, Buy Local
Always aim to source products as locally as possible to reduce auxiliary carbon emissions from transport. Use the proximity principle, 'as local as practical' and avoid airfreight where possible in favour of lower-impact and more sustainable transport options.
Allight aim to use sustainable and locally sourced materials in our products, as often as possible. As Australian manufacturers exporting to the world, we have designed products with the aim of minimising transport generated carbon emissions (and costs) in mind. In fact, our compact NIGHTSHIFTER 4000 towers have been designed to perfectly fit 16 units in a single 40' cargo container and ten on a single flatbed truck. The slightly larger NIGHTSHIFTER 6000 fits eight units in a truck or container.
Durability and Sustainability
Anyone old enough to remember music before iPods, will have seen an exponential shift towards the excessive production and consumption and of short-lived or disposable items; and will probably have forgotten how many record players, cassette recorders, CD players and variously sized sound systems they've purchased and discarded over the past twenty years. We're seeing planned obsolescence of everything from mobile phones to jeans, light bulbs and televisions. And this is not a good thing for our environment.
To combat the environmental costs of living in a disposable society, opt for items which are quality constructed, hard wearing and long lasting to avoid unnecessary production, wastage and landfill. This applies to everything from lunch boxes to lighting towers, mouse mats to mining equipment. The environmental - and financial - costs of scrapping and then remanufacturing, repackaging and reshipping a flimsy, cheap and inferior product far outweigh the costs of reusing a quality, hardwearing item year upon year. Remember - reduce and reuse before you consider recycling.
All Allight products are built to last - just recently, we had a twenty-year old lighting tower in for a service! No scrapping, melting or refabricating required here!
Consider Carbon and Examine Emissions
Make a conscious effort to reduce personal and business carbon emissions. There are many ways we can reduce our carbon footprints (and countless calculators out there to help you determine just how heavy your footprint is); from cycling or taking public transport instead of driving, to switching off the lights in your office when you go for lunch. Shutting down your computer at the end of each day and switching off appliances at the wall, to rugging up instead of turning up the heater in winter. It all adds up.
Where possible, opt for green energy like solar over non-renewable coal: this may be as simple as choosing a hybrid car, replacing your old electric hot water system with a solar unit, or even going completely solar and feeding clean, green energy back into the grid. And always choose energy efficient cars, appliances, machinery and equipment. Even if the initial outlay is greater, it will work out cheaper (and greener!) in the long run.
Allight equipment incorporates high quality materials and components including Perkins engines, which exceed all Australian emissions legislations. The Perkins D series engines - which power our most popular lighting towers - meet and exceed all current and planned European Union, North American and Japanese emissions legislation; EPA Tier 4, Interim Tier 4/EU Stage IIIA. This means 'no more dirty diesels'! Not to mention reduced emissions of oxides of nitrogen, exhaust aftertreatment to minimise particulate matter, and more economical fuel consumption.
