Martin Speed Ltd.
– Towards Sustainable Shipping
Simon Sheffield Executive
Chairman of Martinspeed Ltd.
Friday 7th February 2020
National Army Museum
When lending and borrowing works of art who is responsible
for sustainability and who pays – the lender? Borrower? Shipper? This question was posed by Simon Sheffield
during his presentation on Martinspeed’s efforts toward sustainable
shipping. Sustainability is expensive
and time consuming but as the quote on the Martinspeed website puts it, ‘one
small step by everyone can help to change everything’.
We all have a shared responsibility and in 2010 Martinspeed
committed to theirs in setting out their Environmental Policy (see link
below). Simon took us through the
various areas of sustainable progress within the company:
Crating and packaging
The company hasn’t sent any wooden crates to landfill in ten
years. This has been achieved firstly by
re-using them. A dedicated recycling
team drives around London, (in an electric van), to schools, allotments, carpenter’s
workshops, universities and so on.
Notably, Martinspeed provided all the timber for the temporary shelter
constructed following the Grenfell Tower fire.
They have also produced new flight cases (speed cases) which
can be refitted for each use and house multiple works. Poly takes 500 years to decompose and lets
off harmful gases as it does so. Martinspeed re-use it where possible and if it
can’t then it is baled using one of the companies’ compactors along with other
packing materials such as cardboard and then sent for recycling.
Fuel reduction
They have invested in 22 new vehicles that meet the EURO 6
standard, this includes electric vehicles and charging facilities. In addition to this they consolidate loads
where possible – this is something that Museums and Galleries can contribute to
with good forward planning and a flexible attitude. They work closely with other agents across
Europe, utilising road freight shuttles and consolidating or backloading
vehicles where possible.
Warehouses and
offices
The theme of consolidation continues with Martinspeed’s
buildings. The company has worked to
consolidate its warehouses, three of which occupy the same road. This has reduced vehicle runs between
buildings and therefore reduced emissions.
Their most recent warehouse has been designed with sustainably in mind;
solar panels on the roof (there are solar panels on all of the stores rooves),
intelligent LED lighting in offices and warehouses (reducing usage by half),
thermal insulation and water collectors.
The offices are also moving toward becoming paperless. In 2016 they were using 1 million sheets,
they have now halved that number by using an integrated IT system, barcoding,
4G scanners and storing information on servers.
Sustainability can be overwhelming. Where do we start? At Martinspeed they started by bringing in
consultants to assess their warehouses and offices. This gave a clear idea of what they needed to
tackle. Following a question from the
audience Simon clarified that the drive for change at Martinspeed came from the
top – the ideal scenario. Some of the
other speakers gave an insight into change instigated further down the
hierarchy, both examples equally inspiring. The overriding message is that we all need to get involved wherever we
sit within our organisations. Thanks to
Simon and the other speakers for inspiring us to do just that.
Emily Goalen, Loans Officer, Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museums.
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