Office Equipment & Supplies Guide

Offices are steady consumers of a wide variety of resources. Reviewing the way equipment is used and purchasing is managed can make a big difference in your energy bills and your environmental impact.

Educate employees to turn off equipment when not in use and choose sustainably harvested office wood products. There is a lot you can do to improve your office’s environmental performance – and save money, too.

	Turn Equipment Off When Not in Use Turning things off may seem too simple to make a difference, but it is the easiest place to find significant energy efficiencies with little financial investment.
	Use Non-Toxic Recycled Materials Purchasing policies are one of the most important ways to improve your company’s environmental impact. Whether to buy and what you buy affects the supply chain and sends a message to the market.
	Use Sustainable Office Supplies More than 10% of all landfill waste comes from office supplies. Many workplaces make the switch to recycled and sustainable paper products but neglect to examine the rest of their office supplies.
	Use Sustainable Office Furniture When furnishing your workplace, keep to these three rules: buy only what you need, choose secondhand when available and purchase the most sustainable product possible.
	Replace Worn Out Office Equipment Saving energy in the office starts at the beginning: your choice of equipment can greatly improve – or hinder – your opportunities for cutting energy costs.
	Keep It Green When You Make It Clean The way your offices and common areas are cleaned can significantly affect employee health, air and water quality, and energy and water use.
	Painting & Renovating Renovating or painting your office is a big task, so you want the outcome to have lasting advantages. When deciding on features such as paint, flooring and workspace layout, make energy efficiency, sustainability and health your key priorities.

Last Modified: Aug 13, 2009