Leading by example: Starlab’s journey to a sustainable, greener future

“Passionate for science” since 1998, Starlab has recently undergone major changes to its corporate identity and is quickly establishing itself as an environmentally conscious supplier that is leading the way to more sustainable scientific research. Critical to Starlab’s re-affirmed mission for reduced environmental impact is not only a continuation of stand-out “reduce, reuse, recycle” initiatives across its product range, but also the integration of company-wide green directives, aimed at addressing the company’s own sustainability ratings.

Starlab’s product portfolio specializes in the field of liquid handling technology and laboratory products, including laboratory consumables such as pipette tips, single and multi-channel pipettes, cell culture, tubes, PCR consumables, and benchtop equipment for general laboratory use. With single-use consumables among the highest sources of waste within laboratories, the company prides itself on providing innovative solutions that aim to minimize the environmental impact of these necessary materials without reducing the quality of scientific research. On its fresh-faced homepage, Starlab explains “Although disposable materials are still indispensable in many areas, one of our main goals is to continue working on more resource-friendly solutions”.

Reducing impact from the inside out

In addition to promoting a range of eco-friendly and economical alternatives for the lab, Starlab also continually reviews its own internal processes in order to lessen the company’s impact on the environment. As a result, it was one of the first UK companies within its sector to obtain ISO 14001 certification for Environmental Management. This has been achieved in part through the introduction of green initiatives across the company, including the progressive digitization of administrative processes within its offices to reduce paper usage, and a zero-waste policy within its warehouses where cardboard boxes are reused and plastic padding has been replaced with 100% biodegradable paper packing.

Both Starlab’s marketing and sales teams follow similar initiatives, such as reducing the use of printed materials, providing a paperless ordering process with eCommerce, and helping customers to rationalize their product inventory for the more efficient ordering and storage of products.

A greener journey from R&D to end user

Starlab’s sustainability measures are not only company-wide but also span across each stage of its product and service provision. During research and development, the company’s team focuses on designing greener products that result in the use of less raw materials without compromising quality. The manufacturing of these products, such as the TipOne^® range is then carried out in factories powered with energy generated from renewable resources such as wind. Finally, measures are also taken during product purchasing to reduce environmental impact and increase transportation efficiency. Products are purchased for the entire company group at the same time to provide the best transport efficiencies.

Through these efforts and more, Starlab can be seen as a model for many other suppliers that are looking to help reduce the environmental impact of both their own activities and the scientific community at large. And with dedicated “Green Teams” across the company group, the future of the ‘new’ Starlab is set to become greener still.

More from the Starlab series:

• Find out how Starlab has become more sustainable during the COVID-19 pandemic>>
• Learn more about Starlab’s reduce, reuse, refill, recycle initiatives in this article >>
• Discover 6 simple actions you can take to reduce your lab’s environmental footprint here >>

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