Kent Express explains the sustainability initiatives it has introduced on its pathway to becoming one of the UK’s greenest dental suppliers.
Already well established as one of the UK’s leading dental suppliers for more than 40 years, Kent Express Dental Supplies has now set its sights on becoming one of the industry’s greenest suppliers. And it’s already well on its way.
Kent Express is completely transparent with what it’s doing as a business around environmental responsibility and is committed to being a green business. The company believes that by reducing its own carbon footprint it can inspire its customers, dental patients, and other stakeholders within dentistry to do the same.
This is why the company continues to expand its range of eco-friendly dental products that are designed to help DCPs deliver exceptional care to patients and care for the planet.
The sustainable product range
The entire Kent Express sustainable product range is available to view at kentexpress.co.uk/eco-friendly. Here are some of the products available:
- Re:new Toothbrushes – 100% recycled plastic handle, re-using materials to help reduce waste. Filaments are 100% plant based and derived from sustainably sourced castor oil plants. Packaging is made from 100% recycled cardboard and is recyclable
- Acclean Bamboo Toothbrush – made from bamboo, a renewable resource. Filaments are made from Medex S Green Line filaments and made from up to 100% renewable raw materials
- Acclean Silk Dental Floss – made from natural silk
- Hygovac Bio Aspirator Tubes and Hygoformic Bio Saliva Ejectors – made from bio-based plastic made of sugar canes, a renewable resource. Production also reduces the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
- BioGREEN Biodegradable Micro App – handle made from a food production straw-byproduct, they are biodegradable, compostable and made from renewable and sustainable materials
- Bio-Dappen Disposable Dappens Dish – manufactured from bioplastic (terralene 95%). Applicable to trays. Biodegradable and recyclable
- Clinell Biodegradable Surface Wipes – biodegradable plastic-free surface wipes
- DEHP Paper Cups – recyclable. Made from a renewable resource, whose cultivation benefits the environment, produced with wood fibre from sustainably managed forests, which is a 100% renewable resource.
This selection showcases a sample of Kent Express’s eco-friendly product range. The products have been chosen based on marketing information provided by supplier partners. But even from these examples, it’s clear that green alternatives are available across multiple areas of dentistry, from oral hygiene and disposables to instruments and infection control.
How Kent Express is spearheading the sustainability movement
Kent Express regularly collaborates with industry experts to examine every aspect of its business, so that it can understand how to further improve its green credentials.
Guided by the concepts of ‘reduce, reuse, recycle and rethink’, here is a glimpse of the progress made so far on Kent Express’ journey to becoming one of the UK’s greenest dental suppliers.
Reduce
- Kent Express’ head office has become ‘paperless first’. Documents are always shared digitally as a preference, and only printed if necessary
- Staff travel has been reduced with the introduction of hybrid working policies for office staff and increasing the use of secure video conferencing. If possible, meetings are held virtually rather than involving travel
- Air dryers are used in bathrooms to save paper
- Low energy lighting has been fitted throughout the head office and warehouses. Motion sensors are used to ensure lighting is only active when necessary.
Reuse
- All staff have been provided with reusable drinks bottles. Water dispensing machines are available throughout the head office and warehouse complex. These are connected to the mains supply, eliminating the need for single use plastic bottles.
Recycle
- All possible materials in its head office and warehouse are recycled. This includes paper, cardboard, plastics, and metals, with information for colleagues at every recycling point
- Cardboard and plastics are baled for efficient transport from the warehouse
- The stretch wrap used by the warehousing teams has been switched from virgin materials to 30% recycled LDPE.
Rethink
- Kent Express has switched from using standard paper in its flyers to FSC mix paper. That means that the paper is from sustainable woodland with high conservation values, minimal use of chemicals, and forest that is managed in a way that benefits both workers and the local community. You’ll see the ‘FSC Mix’ logo on the back of all Kent Express flyers
- The company has stopped using non-biodegradable bags for flyer packs, and now uses oxo-biodegradable bags. This will save an estimated 25,000 single use bags annually. This is equivalent to over 15km of plastic bags laid end to end (longer than 1,000 London buses!). This plastic contains an additive that, upon weathering, bio transforms the material into a bioavailable wax that can be mineralised by naturally occurring bacteria and fungi with one to two years, leaving no microplastics behind
- An internal sustainability employee group has also been set up and is responsible for examining processes across all areas of its business to help drive sustainability improvements.
Begin lowering your carbon footprint by shopping at kentexpress.co.uk and enjoy free next working day delivery on all online orders.
This article is sponsored by Kent Express.
