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GREEN TECHNOLOGY

W estcon-Comstor , announced that it is meeting 100 % of its electricity needs through renewable sources across its UK sites . The transition has seen Westcon-Comstor move to powering its sites in Bracknell , Cirencester and Swindon purely by renewable electricity .

It comes as part of a wider company goal whereby the distributor , which operates in more than 70 countries , aims to move to 100 % renewable electricity globally by 2030 . The UK is the first country where the target has been achieved .

“ Having set ourselves ambitious sustainability targets as a business , it is rewarding to be able to demonstrate that we are making tangible progress in an important market like the UK ,” said Mark McLardie , Head of ESG at Westcon-Comstor .

“ Purchased electricity currently accounts for nearly 70 % of our Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions globally , and moving to renewable sources will accelerate our progress towards a 50 % reduction in these emissions by 2030 .”

Solar panels at Canon Vietnam ’ s Thang Long Factory

As well as transitioning to more sustainable sources of energy , for example by switching to renewable electricity tariffs , Westcon-Comstor is working to reduce energy consumption across its UK facilities . An upgrade to energy efficient LED lighting has recently been completed at its Swindon logistics facility , which is expected to reduce consumption by 25,000kWh annually . Meanwhile the company ’ s offices in Cirencester and Bracknell both now benefit from electric vehicle , EV charging points for employees .

By setting the 100 % renewable electricity target last year , Westcon-Comstor aligned with the objectives of RE100 , the global corporate renewable energy initiative bringing together hundreds of large and ambitious businesses committed to 100 % renewable electricity .

Westcon-Comstor recently became the first major global technology distributor to have its net-zero targets formally validated by the internationally renowned Science Based Targets initiative , SBTi .

Canon using renewable energy at manufacturing sites

Canon announced that all of the power used in FY2023 was converted to renewable energy at five locations among four manufacturing companies – Canon Suzhou , Canon Vietnam , Thang Long

Mark McLardie , Head of ESG , Westcon-Comstor

Factory and Tien Son Factory , Canon Hi-Tech Thailand , Ayutthaya Factory , and Canon Prachinburi Thailand .

These produce the mainstay products of its printing business such as office multifunctional devices , home inkjet printers , and large-format inkjet printers .

Canon is working to convert 100 % of the power used at the sites where it manufactures its printing products to renewable energy . So far , the company has installed solar panels within the grounds of some manufacturing sites and has harnessed the renewable energy generated from these panels in its production activities . At the Thang Long Factory owned by Canon Vietnam , approximately 18 % of the entire plant ’ s power is generated from solar panels .

In addition to this initiative , Canon newly obtained a renewable energy certificate , REC which securitizes the environmental value of renewable energy . This allowed the company to convert 100 % of the power used in FY2023 at five locations among four manufacturing sites . •

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