Samsic UK are committed to providing a sustainable service with minimal environmental impact. Our ‘Planet 2030’ sustainable development program, is aimed to demonstrate our desire to reduce the impact of our entire business chain and our commitment to protecting the planet for future generations.

Recent developments in ESG have seen an emerging pattern of including T – Technology as an additional element, so now ESGT includes Cyber Security, Data protection, Technological innovations. If we delve into specific ESGT Market Drivers, by breaking down each key fundamental and critical elements, such as Environmental Sustainability, including:

You can see how that Paradigm shift formulates into an organic strategic growth from CSR to ESGT and embeds into the business mindsets of the future. And we have been building and developing a Sustainable business model to fit around ESGT.

Recent developments have seen us recruit key critical ESGT related roles, such as a Cyber Security expert.

We’ve developed and enhanced our current Health, Safety and Compliance departments.

We’ve also partnered with an External Sustainable Environmental Expert to assist us with our Carbon Compliance. And we introduced a Sustainable Procurement Policy across the business.

All of this will help us shape the future by making Samsic not only a Partner and Employer of Choice, but playing a fundamental part of building a sustainable and green future of this generation but also generations to come.

We are committed to reducing our environmental impact where possible and so carbon reducing measures form an integral part of our strategy, helping us to improve both operational performance and helping to increase our sustainability credentials with the sole aim of preventing further pollution to our planet. As a family company, passing down to the next generation is a value embedded into our DNA. We firmly believe that nature is our greatest source of strength and energy.

Interview with Andy Bryan, Safety, Health, Environmental, Quality (SHEQ) Director for Samsic UK.

Samsic performs carbon-offsetting activities as a tool to encourage action whilst making a notable difference to the wider planet now. Our Verified Carbon Standard Offsets (VCS) include a range of global projects with a variety of biodiverse, social and renewable technology benefits, which over the past 18 months have included:

• Tree planting in the UK, with planting typically taking place in school grounds, parks, farms, woodlands, and other biodiversity sites.
• Providing Clean Cookstoves in Kenya, focusing on the distribution of locally produced energy-efficient cookstoves that are free of charge to users.
• The Brazilian Amazon VCS reduces emissions from Deforestation and Degradation, aiming to protect areas of the forest that would otherwise be subject to logging or destruction for “slash and burn” agriculture.

The Learning Management System (LMS) has been widely launched to facilitate easy, on-the-go learning, whether relating to professional practice, personal well-being, or other skills such as financial management or people skills. The LMS is easy to access, available to all employees, and is a powerful tool for personal development.

Our Toucan system has helped us to achieve a 97% reduction in our single-use plastics usage across client sites. Water savings devices, and machinery such as the InAaqua machine (which refreshes water used in the scrubber driers), are important innovations contributing to a water consumption reduction of 86% throughout the business. Water-saving analysis is becoming increasingly important as we progress with our carbon reduction projects.

In 2021 we introduced hybrid vehicles across Samsic UK to reduce fuel consumption, and where possible we utilise online meetings to minimise business miles in general.

We continually reduce our environmental impact on our client’s sites by hosting quarterly workshops with key stakeholders to report on the environmental measures being performed and discuss how we can improve. We review clients’ energy and electricity usage, water usage, and mobility on-site, improving what we can and offsetting what we cannot by participating in tree planting program.

Notable initiatives towards Samsic’s societal impact include the introduction of the Samsic Charity Steering Group, whereby colleagues throughout the business work together to provide support, whether voluntary or through gifting, to numerous charities, schools or other non-profit institutions across the nation.

Samsic takes the mental health of its colleagues seriously, and as well as providing a year-round Mental Health First Aider program where team members can access confidential, free support, we also celebrate an annual Mental Health Awareness Week. Mental Health Awareness Week 2023 saw Samsic teams across the UK take part in a yoga and wellbeing session (available in-person or online), a healthy social breakfast, and wellbeing resources were distributed to ensure that everyone in the Samsic family knows where to access additional support should they need it.

A cycle-to-work scheme is also accessible for all employees to encourage a carbon-free commute.

Our action against carbon emissions has helped us to improve our operational performance and increase our sustainability credentials, all with the sole aim of preventing further pollution to our planet.

We recognise that these impacts occur not just in the daily operations but through our entire supply chain. As a result, we strive to reduce environmental impacts across the full range of our buildings, our operations and supply chain. We seek to deploy innovative technologies to futureproof and enhance the resilience of our and client businesses to unpredictable changes in the climate to the environment. We aim to improve work place environmental standards through:

• Minimising chemical and detergent consumption through the use of EU Eco Label accredited sustainable materials, the innovative Toucan chemical free cleaning solution and Eco-dosing techniques.
• Design our service delivery models using LEAN processes to eliminate unproductive cleaning and avoid duplication, overlap and over-production.
• Minimise energy and water consumption through the use of technology-enabled equipment.
• Improve indoor air quality standards across our clients’ sites.
• Recycling and Waste Management – We support recycling and recovery techniques from all waste arisings generated. Our cleaning staff will be trained in waste segregation techniques to identify correct waste sorting and segregation to maximise the recovery rate from all waste streams.
• Air Quality Improvement – Our Total Green Solutions approach will support improvements in indoor air quality throughout the workspace using HEPA filtration or with water-based filters with a minimum of 99.97% of all air particles leading directly to improved air quality, eliminating dust, smoke, mould, bacteria and pollen.
• End of Life Equipment – Our supply partner provides an end-of-life waste recovery solution for all equipment items. Equipment beyond economic repair is returned for material and item recovery. Materials recovered from residual equipment are recycled for future use.
• Diversity in the supply chain – Following 2020 assessment, the Samsic Group achieved Gold Level status from EcoVadis with a score of 68/100 for assessing sustainability performance of a diversity of suppliers across global supply chains. The result places Samsic Group among top 2% of companies offering sustainable Facilities Management services and top 3% of companies in all sectors worldwide.

Social Value Policy

We are fully committed to creating a sustainable inclusive society creating a future where everyone has a chance of a better quality of life, through new skills, investment and opportunity.

• Be accountable to our stakeholders and ensure we are taking responsibility for the role we are playing in their lives,
• Manage our activities to maximise the social value we are creating,
• Develop organisational best practice around the way our activities create value through outcomes to stakeholder.

Culture, Engagement and Growth

Our aim is to engage with our employees to provide a challenging, dynamic, inclusive and diverse work environment that supports their professional development, as well as promoting a good work life balance that prioritises their overall health and wellness.

• Learning and Development programs that assist with the upskilling of our workforce.
• Leaders are encouraged to demonstrate an ‘Open Door’ policy and employees can provide feedback through their appraisals, 1-2-1 sessions, employee engagement surveys, and specific departmental surveys.
• Periodic employee appreciate days such ‘Thank your Cleaner’ OSCAR awards, we offer a reward and benefits package, hold summer events, and annual company conferences.

Occupational Health, Safety & Wellbeing

The focus on our Health, Safety & Wellbeing strategy is to deliver a health and safety programme which supports the development of a positive safety culture to ensure our employees and those who may be affected by what we do, go home safe and well every day.

Diversity and Inclusion

We embrace and value Diversity in all its forms, whether gender, age, ethnicity, cultural background or intersectionality. Equal opportunity is integral to our recruitment process, as we aim to develop a community of diverse talent. We seek to maintain a positive workplace, free from discrimination and harassment. We champion equality and mutual respect, promote an environment of fairness and equality.

Community Engagement

We have a long history of providing meaningful, and often transformational, support to the communities in which we operate. We provide charitable support to our nationally recognised charity the Rainbow Trust, we have also carried out various charitable events to support national charities, such as dementia UK, Cancer Trust, alongside our ‘Donate a day scheme’ where we work alongside a local charity for the day, events have included litter picking and beach combing.

Our focus is to promote strong oversight, transparency and risk mitigation at all levels of our business and throughout our supply chain ensuring the resilience and long-term preservation of value and ethics of our business. We view governance as essential to creating and preserving value for our stakeholders, clients and wider community. This includes a solid approach to corporate governance that complies with all applicable laws, regulations and polices as well an adherence to our core values. We believe in holding ourselves accountable to our ESH commitments. We publish information about our ESG performance on a regular basis and produce an annual ESG report.