INTRODUCTION Turning sustainability into profit – ÅF leads by example At ÅF we believe in leading by example. That’s why, for well over 100 years, ÅF consultants have been committed to developing innovative approaches to technical challenges that combine practical solutions with measurable value-added – for our clients, and for ourselves as well. The principles are simple: use no more than you need and restore as much as you can. The motivation is the same as that behind all sound business practice – sustainability. At ÅF we pride ourselves on showing how to turn waste into wages, efficiency into reduced energy consumption and smart ideas into sustainable changes. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that the video conferencing initiatives so warmly advocated by former Swedish Green Party spokesperson Maria Wetterstrand on page 3 of this Green Advisor Report are one step towards greater sustainability that we have already taken here at ÅF years ago. To be credible in the eyes of our clients, ÅF must itself be a model of sustainable development. To that end we have recently adopted a new sustainability policy, revised our Code of Conduct and introduced formal criteria to ascertain the sustainability status of each and every commercial opportunity. Our generation faces a unique set of challenges: the world must become more energy efficient, the use of fossil fuels must be reduced and industry and individuals need to optimise their use of resources and minimise waste. Several projects presented in this issue show how ÅF has helped to meet these challenges. The STIL2 project inventories energy use for the Swedish Energy Agency – a milestone towards achieving Sweden’s target of reducing energy use in the nation’s buildings by 20 percent by 2020. In Finland ÅF has helped the Energy Market Authority to verify that the country’s power plants and other major emitters measure and report their CO2 emissions accurately. We have provided EPCM consulting services for a new biomass CHP plant in Estonia that will cut greenhouse gas emissions by replacing existing oil- and gas-fuelled power plants, and we have improved gas boiler performance at a Swedish paper mill with software specially developed by ÅF to optimise plant control and reduce the use of resources. In other projects we have pioneered a waste management system for the Swedish Armed Forces engaged in UN missions, helped develop a sophisticated control system to minimise energy use in an ozone-based water purification system, and created smartphone applications together with energy management specialist Minol to give apartment residents direct access to details of their current energy use. By definition, however, sustainability is not about what has already been achieved, but about all that still remains to be done. That’s why more than 4,500 experts here at ÅF are waiting to help you, too, to meet the demands of tomorrow’s greener world. The sooner we begin, the quicker you can start to safeguard the future for your company and the planet – and save money while you’re doing so. “We pride ourselves on showing how to turn waste into wages, efficiency into reduced energy consumption and smart ideas into sustainable changes.” Regards, Jonas Wiström, CEO GREEN ADVISOR REPORT 2 011: 0 2 1
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