Speedy ranks in top 25% of companies for sustainability

National construction equipment hire and services provider Speedy, has been ranked in the top 25% of companies for sustainability by ratings provider EcoVadis.

Speedy was awarded silver by EcoVadis in this year’s assessment, with the business scoring highly for its efforts to reduce carbon emissions.

The company has signed up to the science-based targets initiative (SBTI), where emissions targets are certified to be in line with reductions required under the Paris Agreement.

The company also launched its net-zero hire centre in Milton Keynes, certified this year with an A+ energy rating and said it is investing in its fleet to ensure that most of its vehicles are electric or hybrid by 2030, with more than 50% of its capex focused on hire products that help customers to reduce their own emissions.

Amelia Woodley, director of ESG at Speedy, said: “This is a great achievement for our business. Major contractors are increasingly scrutinising the environmental impact of their supply chains.

“The EcoVadis rating gives them the certainty that Speedy is a responsible business that can help them to operate more sustainably.

“With 1,500 vehicles and 200 locations UK wide, net-zero represents a huge transformation for us. But the silver accolade demonstrates the maturity of our ESG strategy and reflects how we’re moving in the right direction as a business.

“We now need to mobilise our supply chain to join us on our journey to enhance our position as the leading provider in sustainable hire. Working as one sustainable supply chain, we can play a significant part in the overall decarbonisation of the built environment."

The EcoVadis assessment universally benchmarks Speedy’s ESG performance across the environment, labour, ethics, human rights, corruption, and sustainable procurement.

The business said it plans to work closely with its supply chain of construction equipment manufacturers to help them improve their sustainability as it targets a gold EcoVadis rating putting it into the top 5% of all businesses.