Kerry Delaney, Managing Director of Rhenus outlines how focusing on changes that deliver the greatest impact can help warehouse operators realise sustainability goals.
Warehousing plays a critical role in the overall environmental impact of supply chains, but knowing where to start with sustainability can be a challenge. In our experience, the answer is rarely the most complex solution.
Start with what you can see
Lighting is the most visible and accessible place to begin.
Replacing older systems with LEDs delivers immediate efficiency gains, including lower consumption, longer operational life and reduced maintenance overheads. When combined with motion sensors and smart controls, the savings improve further.
Running lighting across empty aisles for hours at a time is a cost that has historically been absorbed. Sensor-based controls automatically switch off lighting in unoccupied aisles and low-traffic areas to achieve even greater efficiencies.
Equipment that works harder, and cleaner
Handling equipment is the other major source of energy demand.
To reduce both emissions and running costs, many warehouses are now transitioning to quieter electric forklift fleets. Charging can also be scheduled to optimise energy use and costs.
Automation can also help modern storage and retrieval systems reduce unnecessary warehouse movements and improve picking accuracy, lowering energy use while increasing productivity.
Putting roof space to work
The UK Warehousing Association has launched a toolkit aimed at helping operators unlock the solar potential of warehouse rooftops. Installing solar panels on warehouse roofs especially when combined with battery storage can help power the facility. Indeed, in many cases, solar installations can cover between 20-50% of a warehouse’s electricity needs, depending on roof size and energy use.
Newer warehouse developments are designed with sustainability built in, combining renewable energy with low-carbon construction materials, electric vehicle infrastructure and on-site heat pump systems.
Rhenus’ Nuneaton site is one example of this in practice. Built to BREEAM Outstanding standards, the facility combines solar generation, low-carbon construction and on-site biodiversity features, showing how sustainability can be integrated into both the design and day-to-day operation of a modern warehouse.
Closing the loop on packaging waste
Warehouses handle large volumes of packaging material every day. Cardboard, plastics and pallets move constantly. Without proper systems in place, this material can end up as waste rather than being recovered. At Rhenus, recycling and waste separation form an important part of our approach to improving material recovery. Structured recycling programmes, with clear training and well-positioned infrastructure, make a difference. Separating waste streams at the point of generation is significantly more effective than attempting to sort mixed waste further down the line.
The cumulative case
The commercial logic for sustainable warehouse operations is clear. Energy efficiency reduces costs. Solar generation provides resilience against price fluctuations. Electric fleets lower maintenance expenditure across their operational life. Recycling reduces disposal fees. Genuine progress requires the discipline to embed sustainability into everyday operational planning rather than treating it as a project.
At Rhenus, practical investment and careful operational planning, maintained consistently across our network, is how we see the sector meeting rising sustainability expectations while keeping supply chains reliable and cost-effective.
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