Nottingham-based print company John E Wright go greener with a grant from Nottingham City Council’s Workplace Travel Service.
From a small reprographics company founded in 1900 in central Nottingham, John E Wright has grown into a leading UK supplier of Signage, Exhibition & Print with operations in six cities.
Now a £7 million business with 70 employees the business stands ready for its next chapter which will include a heavy focus on the environment. John E Wright has recently invested £70k on a new roof in readiness for solar panels which will supply at least 50% of the electric power consumed at their major print facility in Nottingham. The panels will be fitted by April 2025, with ambitions to roll this technology out to other sites in the near future.
Further efforts in energy saving, recycled products, electric vehicles and waste reduction are just part of the Company’s new Sustainability Plan which is audited by Nottingham Trent University annually.
Echoing the aim of Nottingham City Council to be carbon neutral by 2028, Tony Barnett, current Chairman and MD said “We are aiming to be carbon neutral by 2030. I think future generations would think that’s the least we could do”.
This recent grant from Nottingham City Council’s Workplace Travel Service has allowed John E Wright to initially install 3 EV chargers at their NG2 site but this was expanded to increase electrical capacity and add a further 2 chargers in readiness for Electric vans in 2026.
John E Wright first applied for a grant online, before speaking with Peter Saunders who oversees the Workplace Travel Service project.
Alan Edwards, Technical Director at John E Wright said “The application process was a breeze and was helped in all aspects along the route by Peter – twice! The 5 new EV chargers mean that our Nottingham HQ is now ready for the rollout of electric vans. Getting a large contribution to the installation costs via the Workplace Travel Service has been really helpful.”
Following a review of the application by the Workplace Travel Service panel, 2 grants totaling £25,000 were awarded. John E Wright paid 25% of the cost, plus VAT, with the remaining 75% coming from the Government’s Local Transport Plan and Nottingham’s Workplace Parking Levy, which means businesses and organisations in Nottingham are supported with sustainable workplace travel improvements at no cost to the Council.
Councillor Neghat Khan, Leader of Nottingham City Council and Executive Member for Strategic Regeneration, Transport and Communications said: “It’s wonderful to see such a successful and locally-established national business getting on board with going carbon neutral by taking advantage of our Workplace Travel Service grants to benefit us all by improving air quality and lowering harmful emissions.”
“Our grants for this financial year are closing soon, so now is the time for businesses, charities and public sector organisations to begin your grant application before you miss out.”
For further information about making a grant application contact workplacetravelservice@nottinghamcity.gov.uk
For green printing ideas why not visist our Eco Displays page
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