We Pride Ourselves on Being a Sustainable Business
As an organisation that prides itself on being a sustainable business and has a sustainable approach to decking, Mayfield works tirelessly at every stage to reduce the impact our decking products have on the environment. We have reduced our environmental impact by using recycled materials, which in turn can be recycled at the end of their life, significantly decreasing the number of virgin plastics being manufactured and avoiding the need for landfills. This has a direct impact on lessening the damage done to our planet.
In addition to this, we are constantly looking for new ways to push our industry towards a more green and sustainable future. We work very closely with our suppliers to minimise our carbon footprint, as well as seeking alternative construction materials to reduce our dependability on timber.
Our most recent innovation is developing and promoting the use of aluminium in our sub-frames. This offers an alternative to traditional timber construction and when compared to galvanised steel frames have improved corrosion resistance and substantial savings in weight making it less expensive to transport.
To encourage our customers to choose Aluminium, we are planting 3 trees for every deck ordered working with our partner More:Trees.
Recycle, Reduce and be Responsible
For generations, we’ve taught our children the importance of “reading, writing, and arithmetic” and now it seems our children and our grandchildren are telling us we must act now to stave off the impacts of climate change. At Mayfield, we take this seriously and have adopted our own 3 ‘R’s to ensure we play our part and do our best to reduce our impact on the planet. Recycle, Reduce and Responsible are central to our business.
What does each of the 3Rs mean for Mayfield?
1: Recycle – we select products that are manufactured using recycled materials (rather than virgin plastics which have a higher impact on the environment), and at the end of their life can be easily recycled again. This includes all our material waste and off-cuts.
2: Reduce – we are reducing our global impact with our Net Zero factory and replacing timber sub-frames with aluminium which reduces our dependability on Timber. We are changing our vehicle fleet and forklift trucks over to EVs.
3: Responsible – We manage our products from cradle-to-grave and take whatever steps we can to reduce the impact on the environment. This means reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and switching to greener technology such as Solar which powers our factory and vehicle chargers. We are also proud of our partnership with the “More Trees” foundation which promotes the replanting of trees to help reduce CO2.
A Mayfield Deck is a Step towards a Cleaner Planet!
A company with 33 years of experience supplying and installing UPVC decking might not be your first thought when sustainability comes to mind. However, at Mayfield, we take this issue very seriously, especially where less sustainable materials like plastic are concerned. We manufacture our decking boards from recycled materials, and at the end of their life, they can be recycled again to cut down on waste and avoid landfills.
Our commitment to sustainability doesn’t stop there. We are reducing our dependency on the timber used in the construction of our sub-frames and sponsoring an initiative that promotes afforestation.
Aluminium Subframes
Our aluminium subframes require no corrosion treatment, are lightweight to handle and transport, and at the end of their considerable life are easily recyclable. To encourage our customers to choose, we are planting 3 trees for every aluminium deck ordered.
To understand more about the design of our aluminium subframes, check out this video:
Plastic and Timber
We use up to recycled raw materials instead of virgin plastics in the manufacturing process of our UPVC decking. This doesn’t affect the quality of the finished product and makes a positive impact on our environment by lowering air and plastic pollution, and recycling at the end of life helps keep waste plastics out of the oceans and landfills. The recycled materials we’ve selected are widely available through our supply chains so there is little chance of scarcity. We also reprocess any offcuts back into raw materials to cut down on waste.
The timber we use in our decks is all FSC certified, which means it is sourced from well-managed and sustainable forests. The use of timber in construction locks away carbon for the lifespan of the product. It’s been calculated that an average 3-bedroom timber-framed house uses about 6m cubed of timber and stores away 1.2 tonnes of carbon, equivalent to over 4 tonnes of CO2. When the wood is recycled, that carbon is released back into the environment, effectively making it carbon-neutral.
We no longer want to rely on Timber in our construction so to encourage our customers to switch to alternative greener options, we are planting three trees for every aluminium deck chosen. Working with our partner THG (more:trees), will help us and our customers make a positive impact on the environment. As part of the initiative, Mayfield will issue certificates to customers showing the number of trees we have planted on their behalf for choosing aluminium over timber frames.
Image Credit: THG (more:trees)
What Else Are We Doing as a Sustainable Business?
Solar Panel Facilities and Electric Vehicles
As well as offering greener choices to our customers, we are also turning to renewable sources of energy. In February 2022, we installed solar panels to power our factory in Poole. It was simple and surprisingly affordable and provided enough energy to run the entire factory and offices during the day, as well as our e-charging station for electric forklifts and fleet of new Electric Vehicles. We are no longer dependent on energy off the grid. We want to inspire and encourage other local SMEs to think about their environmental strategy as we continue on our environmental journey.
Eco-awareness Encouragement
At Mayfield, we encourage our employees to cycle, walk or car share to work to help strengthen our commitment to producing less pollution. For every employee that gets to work this way, we reduce our carbon footprint and this also helps to keep employees healthier and happier. Back in 2012, Mike Jarmey, our Managing Director, decided to start cycling to work for 2 days every week in order to reduce his carbon footprint. Mike has continued with this commitment and has saved over 8.1 tonnes of CO2e from entering the atmosphere during the last 10 years!
Our Other Partnerships:
Surfers Against Sewage – We are proud of our Dorset home and our stunning Jurassic coastline and want to help preserve them. Mayfield has partnered with Surfers Against Sewage – a major UK charity that works to try and tackle plastic pollution and protect our coastlines for all to enjoy, as well as tackle sewage pollution.
Bumblebee Conservation – We have sponsored the Bumblebee Conservation Trust since 2005, and continue to work together to raise funds and awareness for this important cause.
Embrace Sustainability
Sustainability has become a necessity for businesses due to changing perspectives. It is becoming more critical for companies to address the gap between knowing and doing by changing their operations and embracing more sustainable business practices. Mayfield is strongly committed to sustainability, in large part through transparency and addressing material issues. We are seen as pioneers in our industry, and we hope that many more like-minded companies will follow suit.
If you are a business that is starting out on a sustainability journey and would like any advice we would be delighted to help or if you would like to find out more about Mayfield and our decking services, please call us on 01202 233959 or email us.
FAQs
Q: What is Mayfield’s approach to being a sustainable business?
A: Mayfield prides itself on adopting a sustainable business approach by using recycled materials for their decking products, reducing the need for virgin plastics and avoiding landfill waste.
Q: How does Mayfield reduce its environmental impact?
A: Mayfield reduces its environmental impact by using recycled materials in the manufacturing of its UPVC decking. They also promote the use of aluminium sub-frames instead of timber, which are lightweight, corrosion-resistant, and easily recyclable.
Q: What is the significance of the 3Rs for Mayfield’s sustainable business approach?
A: The 3Rs – Recycle, Reduce, and Responsible – are central to Mayfield’s business strategy. They focus on selecting recycled materials, reducing global impact with a Net Zero factory, and responsibly managing products from cradle-to-grave.
Q: How does Mayfield incorporate recycling into its decking products?
A: Mayfield uses recycled raw materials instead of virgin plastics in the manufacturing process of its UPVC decking. Additionally, all material waste and off-cuts are recycled to minimise waste.
Q: How does Mayfield reduce its dependence on timber in construction?
A: Mayfield is reducing its reliance on timber by introducing aluminium sub-frames as an alternative. This reduces the demand for timber and promotes sustainability.
Q: What does Mayfield do to offset the use of aluminium in their decks?
A: Mayfield plants three trees for every aluminium deck ordered to offset the environmental impact of using aluminium.
Q: What certifications does Mayfield’s timber have, and how does it contribute to sustainability?
A: Mayfield’s timber is FSC certified, sourced from well-managed and sustainable forests. Timber used in construction sequesters carbon, making it carbon-neutral until recycled.
Q: How does Mayfield promote the use of aluminium over timber frames?
A: Mayfield encourages customers to choose aluminium over timber frames by planting three trees for every aluminium deck chosen. They partner with THG (more:trees) for this initiative.
Q: How is Mayfield utilising solar energy and electric vehicles?
A: Mayfield installed solar panels to power its factory in Poole, providing energy for the entire facility, including an electric vehicle charging station for its EV fleet.
Q: How does Mayfield promote eco-awareness among its employees?
A: Mayfield encourages its employees to cycle, walk, or car-share to work, reducing the company’s carbon footprint and promoting healthier and happier employees.
Q: What are some of Mayfield’s partnerships related to sustainability?
A: Mayfield has partnered with organisations such as Surfers Against Sewage to tackle plastic pollution and protect coastlines and the Bumblebee Conservation Trust to raise funds and awareness for bumblebee conservation.
Q: Why is sustainability important for businesses, according to Mayfield?
A: Mayfield emphasises that sustainability is crucial for businesses due to changing perspectives and the need to address environmental issues through transparent and responsible practices.
Q: What is Mayfield’s hope for other companies in their industry?
A: Mayfield hopes that other like-minded companies will follow their lead and adopt more sustainable business practices, making sustainability a norm in the industry.
Q: How does Mayfield work with suppliers to minimise its carbon footprint?
A: Mayfield works closely with suppliers to reduce its carbon footprint by seeking alternative construction materials and minimising the use of environmentally impactful resources.
Q: How does Mayfield contribute to afforestation and promoting a greener future?
A: Mayfield sponsors an initiative that promotes afforestation by planting three trees for every deck ordered and collaborates with partner More:Trees to encourage a greener future.