Our Commitment to Environmental Sustainability

The FM Studio is committed to best practice with regard to environmental sustainability. This is demonstrated in the values that we embrace while actively involved in various activities to promote sustainability within the workplace and the wider community. We are aware that environmental sustainability is more than just reducing our business operations' impact on the environment. It can help our business become more resilient and productive, save on costs and give us a distinct competitive advantage.

At a high level, our activities include: the responsible acquisition, installation, use and disposal of ICT products & services so as to utilise resources more effectively, improve efficiency, increase productivity and reduce the environmental impact of operations; the reduction in energy & water consumption; improved waste management and responsible recycling initiatives; minimising commuting to workplaces and the use of public transport where necessary; and reduction in office consumables - paper & printer ink. Our current sustainability improvements include:

Reducing energy consumption

• Converting all halogen & incandescent lights/light-bulbs in the office to LED & CFLs.
• Enforcing a policy of switching off all equipment & appliances at the wall - not just placing them in 'standby mode'.
• Minimising use of the 5-star rated air-conditioning unit by using workstation fans instead.
• Upgrading the electric water heater to a more energy-efficient heat pump.
• Installation of a smart electricity meter.
• Installing light & movement sensors to automatically switch lights on/off.
• Being aware of heat escaping in winter & heat entering in summer by keeping doors & windows closed during hot & cold times of day/night. Otherwise, in non-extreme conditions, allowing air to flow and ventilate by opening windows & doors.
• Only purchasing computer equipment, peripherals & other office appliances with a high energy star efficiency rating.

Reducing water consumption

• Replacing toilets, urinals, shower heads & taps with WELS water-efficiency products.

Waste disposal & recycling

• A strict policy on waste recycling, separating genuine rubbish from garden waste, recyclable plastics, glass & metal products, cardboard & paper.
• Disposing of used batteries responsibly at Officeworks used-battery collection depots.
• Using the blank reverse side of junk mail and envelopes as office note paper.
• Use of G1 Asset Management - experts in computer recycling & secure IT asset disposal for 'end-of-life' computers, servers and other electrical office equipment.

Saving fuel & travel

• Reducing the hours spent commuting & use of the car. All employees work primarily from their home offices, unless required to work onsite at a client's location.
• Use of conferencing & collaborative software to connect remotely rather than commute to onsite meetings.
• Use of public transport where necessary, to avoid commuting by car.

Other initiatives

• Printing to PDF and storing files in a document management system in soft copy rather than printing to hard copy - reducing consumption of paper and printer ink.
• Refilling printer ink cartridges from large bottles of ink, bought in bulk.
• Not using aluminium coffee pods.
• Employing good husbandry techniques in the kitchen to reduce food waste.
• Reducing all consumables.

Future improvements

• Installing solar panels & a battery wall unit.
• Recycling 'grey water'.
• Installing rainwater tanks.
• Replacing appliances (washing machine, dishwasher) with WELS water-efficiency products.
• Replacing appliances with more efficient energy star ratings.
• Recycling garden waste for composting.
• Reviewing building insulation for better heat-saving efficiency (e.g. ceiling insulation with a greater R-value).
• Installing a high-efficiency (five or six-star rated) natural gas heater.
• Continuing to better manage natural resources and waste - saving money without compromising comfort.

Footnote: Our company was one of the first in Australia to drive the new wave of mobile products and services by developing innovative mobile apps using FileMaker Go on iPhones & iPads. The ability to access office systems away from the office and out in the field - on mobile devices - provided an enormous opportunity for our company to be more environmentally & socially responsible. We were early adopters of new technologies provided by Apple hardware, FileMaker's software and fast 4G networks, and amongst the first to develop mobile apps that contribute to a business's sustainability on all levels.