5 Creative Ways Your Office Can Use Less Paper To Save On Waste 

More and more businesses are looking at ways to cut back on their waste. Not only can it help them fulfil sustainability policies, but it can save money too. Reducing waste is something every business can do to try and be more responsible, and where better to start than paper? 

Paper is used in offices all over the world. We’ve become accustomed to printing out documents, invoices and all kinds of paperwork, but in the age of digital technology and cloud computing – do we need as much paper now?  

Cutting back on paper waste can be a challenge. But fortunately, we’ve come up with five creative ways your office can use less paper to help you reduce your overall waste.  

With cloud-based computing becoming the norm for many workplaces, it’s easy than ever to go digital with your documents. If the pandemic has taught us anything, documents work better when they’re saved online, providing better opportunities for collaboration, backing up and simpler file storage. 

Going paperless with your documents helps save waste by limiting unnecessary printing, and it also helps save space in the office. With online record-keeping, you can say goodbye to filing cabinets and cluttered desks, ensuring everything is kept securely online. 

A flipchart is a useful tool for team meetings, brainstorms and gathering ideas. But the flipchart and sticky notes used for these sessions tend to end up in the bin once they’re done with. Using a virtual whiteboard tool can be a fantastic way to collaborate without paper, helping you plot out different ideas and save the results for future use.  

This is the perfect solution for teams that are working in a hybrid or remote way, allowing teams to share and collect ideas – with everyone having access to the information afterwards. Try something a little different for your next team session, use a virtual whiteboard and save some paper. 

It can be difficult to change the culture of your office to move everyone away from the habit of printing paper, so a little nudge might help. Reducing the number of printers you have in the office may help deter people from printing as much, as would a pull print system.  

Cutting down on the amount of paper your office uses will help you save costs as less paper and ink are needed, and it will help you reduce your waste too.

Using electronic documents is a useful way to cut down on paper and help keep your files secure. PDFs are one example of an electronic file type that’s ideal for documents, and you can even ‘print’ to a PDF to convert another file into this format. PDFs reduce the need for printouts with electronic signatures and you can add forms, smart referencing and other content to suit your needs.   

You can also scan existing paper documents to convert into PDFs to help you store and archive them, helping to reduce the amount of paper in your office and improve your record-keeping.  

Most people use a notebook throughout the working day to scribble things down and list actions, to-dos and more. But why not save paper and use a digital notebook? Tools like Microsoft One Note are perfect for helping to catalogue your different thoughts, meeting notes, lists – whatever you would normally jot down with a pen and paper. With a digital notebook, you won’t have to worry about losing or misplacing it, nor worry about your pen running out! You will also be able to share your notes easily with others without worrying about someone having to read your writing.  

If you still miss the pen element of writing notes, you could always invest in a stylus for your tablet or phone and write notes that can easily be converted into text.  

With so many ways to reduce the amount of paper your office uses, you can significantly cut down on paper and enjoy the many benefits that come with digital solutions for improved productivity and security.  

Even with your efforts to cut down on paper waste, it’s almost impossible to eliminate paper completely. With the paper that’s left, you’ll want to ensure you have a system in place for office paper recycling that reduces waste and makes it easier for your employees to recycle paper.  

A waste baler can be a simple way to help you manage your waste paper. Not only will it help keep your workplace tidy and organised, but it will also help to compact your paper recycling to make it easier for it to be taken away. By compressing your paper waste, you could save money on waste collections while doing more to help make your company greener.  

At phs Wastekit, we provide a range of products and services to help with your workplace waste and recycling. We stock balers to both buy and rent, and we can provide your business with a free Wastesaving Audit to help you identify ways to cut costs and save money and reduce the amount of waste produced by your business. With some changes to your processes and the right tools, you can easily cut down on your business’ waste and enjoy greener, more sustainable ways of working.  

Contact phs Wastekit today and let us help you save thousands on your waste.