We’ve all experienced the frustration of a gadget or appliance failing before it should – and finding it too hard, too expensive or just too much trouble to get it fixed. Such a broken-modus-operandi seems to have become ‘the way it is’, but the wastefulness and need to dispose of those no-use goods is damaging to the environment – as well as running counter to the drive for decarbonisation, as it encourages the production of more (often unnecessary) goods. The manufacture of those goods, of course, requires the use of raw materials and energy – and across the EU it’s estimated that only 5% of the value of the original raw material is recovered when goods are burned as waste.
“Only 5% of the value of raw material is recovered when goods are burned as waste”
With consumption in 2030 predicted to be twice that of 2010, the UK government is doing something about this premature obsolescence, recently introducing new rules which mean that manufacturers will have to make available both ‘repair information’ and spare parts, for up to ten years, for certain new goods and televisions. The move aligns Great Britain with the EU and Northern Ireland, where the same legislation for “the legal right to repair” came into effect in March. But in industry, here in the Cardiff Capital Region, a far-sighted company has been pioneering ‘repair’ as a sustainable solution for many years ….
“A beacon of best-practice in combating the overconsumption that’s a driver of climate change”
Bridgend-based Kontroltek is an industrial repair company that’s a beacon of best-practice in combating climate change. Every week, their workshops handle hundreds of different electronic and mechanical parts that have suffered ‘issues’ – usually sent to Kontroltek by manufacturers who don’t have the facilities themselves to repair or maintain the parts.
In a world where you can order something new at the touch of the button, Kontroltek offers an alternative to the overconsumption that’s one of the key contributors to greenhouse gases. By repairing parts, they’re helping to increase longevity, lower levels of waste and dampen the demand for ‘unnecessary’ new products – as well as reducing flight or shipping emissions, as they often don’t need to order parts from overseas and can repair the part not far from where the customer is based, which also helps many small businesses save time and money.
“Repairing parts to increase longevity and reduce waste in a UK that generates over 40 million tonnes of commercial waste”
In a UK that generated 41.1 million tonnes of commercial and industrial waste in 2016, the success of the company – which will celebrate its tenth birthday in January 2022 – can’t be overstated. In B2B, time and money are usually the most important factors, with sustainability an afterthought, so it’s a real testimony to Kontroltek’s expertise, efficiency and understanding of their customers’ needs that they have built a world-class service that even competes with D2B service suppliers.
Much of their achievement is down to a belief in analysing and scrutinising their customer journeys and choosing UK-based suppliers whenever possible – and it’s a repair service that will become even more valuable to businesses as well as the planet, because as equipment manufacturers discontinue product lines and the availability to order these parts online becomes rarer, the Kontroltek business model of repairing parts will become even more popular as many small businesses simply can’t afford to keep changing the parts they use.
“The more jobs done by Kontroltek and the more repairs they make, the more green outcomes are achieved.”
It’s good for us and the world to know that Kontroltek is also a company that practices what it preaches in terms of decarbonisation and sustainability – beginning to make the move towards hybrid vehicles (with an eventual plan of having a fully electric fleet) and operating a logistics function that ensures their drivers are travelling the shortest possible routes, using less fuel and creating fewer emissions. With the more jobs they do and the more repairs they make, the more green outcomes are achieved – creating a brand that’s trusted in many markets as a best friend for engineers looking for a cost-effective solution and a custodian of the planet that’s setting a standard for sustainability in industry.
To find out more about Kontroltek visit them at www.kontroltek.biz
