Environment

Environmentally friendly - buy your new vacuum with a clean conscience

There's more to being environmentally aware than just looking at energy ratings – a true friend of the environment will ensure their new vacuum is responsibly manufactured too.

Everyone knows to look for efficiency when it comes to buying new appliances for the home, but what about the amount of energy consumed in their production and distribution? Sometimes this can far outweigh the energy used during the entire lifespan of a product. According to research by the Commission on Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), WWF, and Halifax, 87% of consumers would like their home to be more environmentally friendly. To achieve this, we need to consider the environmental impact of the products we buy right from their very inception, not just once they enter our homes.

Manufactured in Germany, using locally sourced materials and components, which already ensures a smaller carbon footprint than products imported from the Far East, every SEBO vacuum cleaner is made to last. This not only reduces waste and uses fewer resources, it even saves customers money. What is really impressive is the lengths the company will go to ensure every single element of a vacuum’s construction makes a minimal impact on the environment. Not only is plastic recycled into new components, but the factory is completely self-sustaining with regards to electricity – and even makes contributions to the national grid when supply exceeds demand. A combined heat and power system recovers virtually 100% of its primary energy source; as well as producing the electricity required to run machinery, the warm air created by its generator is used to heat the warehouse while engine coolant is pumped through the office radiators.

Water resources are also conserved at the SEBO factory. Rainwater (aka brown water) is collected from the roof, then filtered and stored to be used in production and within the factory washrooms, saving the unnecessary use of treated drinking water. The factory and offices are designed to use natural light as much as possible, avoiding artificial lighting and the associated power consumption and working hours are scheduled to make use of daylight hours. This also creates a much better working environment. SEBO have a highly skilled and dedicated workforce and the management of SEBO are very aware of their social responsibility and the huge contribution the commitment and health of their staff make to the quality of SEBO products.

For SEBO, reducing the carbon footprint of a product starts in the initial design process. Part of the design brief is to ensure that they will pack into the smallest possible cartons and that the carton sizes ensure that the maximum number of machines will fit onto a pallet. Most packaging is made from unbleached recycled cardboard with waste paper from the offices being shredded and re-used for packing. Even deliveries are carefully planned to ensure lorries are filled to their maximum capacity and are running as economically as possible.

“SEBO is at the very forefront of environmental technology and we are making continuous improvements to ensure we stay that way. Anyone who owns a SEBO vacuum can rest assured that it has been produced and delivered in the most environmentally responsible way possible and that it is built to last,” says Justin Binks, director of SEBO (UK) Ltd.

What is WEEE?

The Waste Electrical or Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive requires countries to maximise separate collection and environmentally friendly processing of these items. In the UK, distributors (including retailers) must provide a system which allows all customers buying new electrical equipment the opportunity to recycle their old items free of charge. Those establishing their own take-back scheme must as a minimum offer all customers buying new electrical equipment free take-back of their old electricals on a like-for-like basis.

Why recycle?

Unwanted electrical equipment is the UK's fastest-growing type of waste. Many electrical items can be repaired or recycled, saving natural resources and the environment. If you do not recycle, electrical equipment will end up in landfill where hazardous substances will leak out and cause soil and water contamination – harming wildlife and also human health.

To remind you that old electrical equipment can be recycled, it is now marked with a crossed-out wheeled bin symbol. Please do not throw any electrical equipment (including those marked with the crossed-out wheeled bin symbol) in your bin.

WEEE Declaration of Compliance

SEBO (UK) Ltd WEEE Producer Number: WEE/CG0044SY/PRO.

As a producer of electrical appliances, SEBO (UK) Ltd complies with the Electrical and Electronic Equipment Waste Directive (WEEE). We have joined the Valpak Compliance Scheme and the contribution we make into this scheme helps fund the development of civic recycling facilities called Designated Collection Facilities for the disposal of end-of-life household electrical products.

Business to consumer (B2C) WEEE:

For recycling your end-of-life domestic vacuum cleaner, the retailer who sells you a replacement machine will be able to help and advise you. To find the nearest Designated Collection Facility to you and other information on recycling please visit the website www.recycle-more.co.uk

Alternatively, if you buy a new SEBO vacuum cleaner directly from SEBO (UK) Ltd online, we will arrange to recycle your old vacuum cleaner free of charge if you return it to us within 28 days.*

Business to business (B2B) WEEE:

We have carefully considered how to operate a recycling policy for our commercial machines which has the minimum environmental impact and cost to end-users. Our view is that to return end-of-life products back to SEBO (UK) Ltd would create excess carbon pollution and contribute to further road congestion. Therefore we recommend that the end user arranges for recycling to take place locally to them. For this reason, we have not added a recycling charge to the original purchase price of our products, so that these can be met by the end-user when products reach their end-of-life.

We are happy to arrange for collection and recycling if required, but please bear in mind that as we have not included for this in the purchase price we will have to charge for this service.

If you are unsure about how or where to arrange recycling, or have any other questions, please contact us on 01494 465533 or visit www.recycle-more.co.uk

*Shipping charges may apply