Go Green with Optima! July 24, 2008

Optima Engineering is now exploring new and innovative ways to make our office environmentally friendly. Optima strives to achieve sustainable design with our projects and we see the importance of continuing past the design aspect and executing environmental efforts to reduce office waste and energy.Optima Engineering aims to reduce its carbon footprint and provide a positive example of a company that has successfully “gone green”. We would like to share several different green ideas that we plan to implement at our office during the course of the next year.Please feel free to follow the links provided for excellent ways to practice green behavior.

• Research and gather information from case studies of companies that have successfully gone green.
• Insist that employees turn off all electronic devices at the end of the day.To prevent phantom energy connect all of a cubicle’s devices to one power strip and turn the strip off at the end of each day. Additional Information on Phantom Energy and Prevention.
• Compact florescent light bulbs save up to 75% of energy used in the office. See assortments and pricing from Optima’s primary office provider, Staples. CFL Options-Staples.
• Controlled temperature at the office, keeping the thermostat at no higher than 68 degrees in the winter and no lower than 76 degrees in the summer. Distributing fans within the office helps make these temperatures comfortable for staff; fans also consume considerably less energy than air condition. Staples-Example of Energy Efficient Fan.
• Integrate more eco-friendly office supplies into our daily regime such as:Recycled Paper Clips, Recycled Perforated Writing Pads, Recycled Post-It Notes, Assorted Recycled Pens, etc.
• Recycle old cell phones in lieu of trashing them, by donating them to local domestic violence and homeless shelters such as Crisis Assistance Ministry and United Family Services.
• Add plants and greenery to the office to absorb indoor pollutants.
• Implement the recycling of plastic bottles in addition to our aluminum recycling.
• In lieu of using a Fax Machine use a Fax Modem which uses Optima’s computers to transmit data. Additional Information on Fax Modems.
• Encourage employees to use the Double-Sided print option when printing out lengthy documents.
• Consider getting rid of paper plates and plastic stemware all together, by asking employees to donate old mismatched plates, mugs, and silverware.
• Make efforts to eliminate junk mail which in turn eliminates waste. Do Not Mail List. Along with this aspect, take the time to contact publications that are sending duplicates or sending mail to employees that are no longer with Optima.

---