A Handy List Of Things You Can Do For An Eco-Friendly Office

It’s completely possible to have a green office! With the environmental issues we face today, it’s more important than ever to be environmentally conscious. And because the average American spends most of their time in their place of employment, there’s no better place to implement these environmental office solutions. We’ve put together a (by no means comprehensive) list of the many different ways you can green your office. Read through the sections and see how many of these you can implement in your work environment (we bet it’s a lot more than you think!).

Green Tips for Office Supplies  

• Look for and purchase green products such as staple-less staplers and pens that can be refilled repeatedly rather than sent to a landfill.
• Green office supplies are surprisingly easy to obtain. Look for and purchase products that are made from post-consumer content (materials have been collected back from previous products and remade into new ones) such as paper and plastic products. Paper clips, staplers and even UPS systems made with post-consumer content are now available, for instance.

Green Tips for the Office: Printers

• Consolidate your office tasks with a multi-function printer. This way, you have the ability to copy, scan, and fax as well as print– all in one single piece of equipment. Most multi-function printers will also come with an energy saving feature. 
• If you need to print, try to use both sides of the paper in the process.
• If eco-mode is available, utilize it as often as you can when printing. This mode is acceptable for anything that is not a final draft or requires high-quality output.
• Recycle your ink and toner cartridges if they are single use
• Use recycled paper for printing

Green Tips for the Office: Computers

• If your computer isn’t being used, turn it off.
• Set up and adjust the settings for standby mode. This way, if a computer is idle for a certain amount of time, they will enter standby mode and use less energy.
• Newer computers and monitors are designed to be more efficient with energy, so consider updating your computers on a rolling basis. 
• Do you have extra computer equipment you won’t use anymore? You can donate it to a non-profit (which is tax deductible, a bonus) or you can locate the nearest place that recycles electronics.

Green Tips for the Office: Lighting

• If you’re the last one out of a room that won’t be used, turn off the lights as you’re leaving. An empty room does not need to have lights on all the time.
• Switch over to LED bulbs wherever you possibly can. The energy usage of these bulbs is drastically less than that of incandescent bulbs.
• When the office is closed for the day, turn off all the lights

Green Tips for the Office: Heating and Cooling

• Set your office thermostat so that the heating and cooling set points are just a few degrees apart. This will ensure the air conditioner does not cycle frequently. 
• Have your heat and air systems serviced regularly.
• Make sure all windows and doors have weather-stripping and caulking. This will help with energy efficiency by preventing heat loss and drafts.   

Green Tips for the Office: Washrooms

• Ditch the paper towels and install a hand dryer.
• Make sure the sink taps are turned off completely after using. Leaky taps can waste a shocking amount of water.
• Is a toilet continuously running? Have a plumber come fix it as soon as possible. Running toilets can waste phenomenal amounts of water and can be easily fixed.
• Make sure all cleaning products are Eco-friendly.

Have we missed anything? Have ideas to add to any of the sections? We’d love to hear from you! Send us an email and we’ll include your contribution the next time we update this list!  

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The Office Center, Inc. has proudly offered the Eastern New Mexico and West Texas communities with Office Products, Furniture, Equipment and Service for 45 years. We understand what it takes to keep a business office running smoothly and we are ready to help you. We currently utilize 465 vendors with an in-house product database of over 110,000 items, with much more available to us. You can Contact Us through email or Call Us at any time, we are happy to help.