Hypnos Reinforces Environmental Leadership with New Certification
We're proud to announce that our Princes Risborough site has successfully achieved compliance with ISO14001, the standard that specifies requirements for an effective Environmental Management System (EMS). This internationally recognised certification is further proof of our sustainability leadership in the bed manufacturing industry and the importance we attribute to ensuring the highest possible environmental standards.
ISO14001 is a voluntary standard and we believe we are the first UK bed manufacturer to achieve the certification. To pass the audit, we have had to assess every area of our manufacturing processes at Princes Risborough and develop formal systems to limit environmental impact at every stage.
Over the last 10 years, Hypnos has undergone a comprehensive sustainability journey and the road to compliance has required us to review the way it operates in order to achieve a wide range of environmental objectives. These have included efforts to reduce the CO2 produced per unit by 10% each year, to maintain carbon neutrality and to eliminate factory waste going to landfills.
With a clear focus on sustainable design, all Hypnos beds are completely recyclable, ensuring they never need to go to landfill. We are also committed to using environmentally friendly materials of the highest quality, with 100 per cent sustainable fillings and the timber within divan bases sourced from managed forests that comply with the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) and The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC™). In fact we have gone the extra mile when it comes to sustainability with both UK factories also achieving FSC® and PEFC™ multi-site certification. This guarantees full traceability and that our timbers have been independently checked at every stage of processing, ensuring they comply with the highest environmental standards.
Achieving environmental management system compliance has also required auditing all suppliers about their own environmental processes and ensuring that every Hypnos employee is trained and aware of the EMS. We have trained a number of auditors throughout the business to evaluate and report on their specific areas at regular intervals, to make sure continual improvements are being made.
Chris Ward, Group Marketing Director of Hypnos, said: “Ever since we became the first carbon-neutral bedmaker in the world eight years ago when we complied with rigorous PA 2060 Carbon Neutrality standards, we have continued to strive for the highest environmental practises. ISO14001 ensures that, as a business, we are considering the environmental impact of everything we’re doing, which helps us to fulfil our vision and core values, helping to protect the planet for future generations.”
“Having and maintaining an EMS requires buy-in from the whole business and working together to achieve and improve sustainable practices. To achieve the standard shows real commitment throughout the organisation - from directors to those making the beds. As a business, we see sustainability as a journey, rather than a tick-box exercise. Through monitoring and continually reviewing our environmental impact, we can introduce recommended changes which not only reduce our carbon emissions but also improve energy and waste. It also allows us to hone our efforts in all wider aspects of recycling and the circular economy, something we’re incredibly passionate about as a business.”
We aim to continue to improve how we identify, manage, monitor and control environmental issues within the business. To help drive this strategy, the company recently announced the appointment of Richard Naylor as Sustainable Development Director. The newly created role has been specially developed to meet our ambitious ongoing commitment to put sustainability at the centre of our product development and innovation strategy.