The law is clear, says Worksmart, you have a legal duty to provide your workforce an “adequate supply of wholesome drinking water” – in accordance with the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992.
You might choose to meet those regulations in a very basic way simply by providing access to tap water straight from the mains.
But any self-respecting company wants to go one better than that by offering filtered – and preferably cooled – water to drink. That led to a growth in the popularity of the office water-cooler. Older models continue to be in use throughout offices around the country today.
More recently, though, staff have moved away from drawing water from a common water cooler, where the water loses its freshness after being stored too long, and instead turn to pre-packaged plastic bottles of water.
The problem with plastic
More plastic water bottles are being sold in the UK than any time before, said the Independent newspaper on the 20th of October 2019 – by an industry that is worth more than £3 billion a year.
Their use, and the pollution caused by their disposal, is contributing to a considerable environmental problem that is barely helped – and maybe made even worse – by attempts to roll out biodegradable and compostable plastics, said the story.
Your own inhouse bottling system
It doesn’t have to be this way. Your office can produce fresh, pure, filtered and cooled bottled water using robust reusable glass bottles filled from your own inhouse supplies.
With a touch of a button, you can banish the use of harmful plastic bottles throughout your office. The filtered water produced by such systems is filtered, pure, fresh, great-tasting and may be chilled, still or sparkling.
It will go down well with both staff and visitors to your offices – who are likely to welcome your corporate efforts in moving away from plastic bottles towards a system that is way more sustainable and environmentally friendly. By making the switch, therefore, you may also give a welcome boost to your perceived corporate social responsibility.
Filtered water systems
Some suppliers of filtered water systems also manufacture the reusable glass bottles which you can fill – and fill again.
They can often go a step further by personalising those bottles with your own company or organisation’s logo – together with a brief message confirming your commitment to environmental sustainability and underlining your corporate social responsibility.
So, you get the chance to boost your company image while delivering fresh, clean and great-tasting water to your boardroom tables and the desks of your staff – a constant reminder of you having chosen a sustainable solution to the supply of drinking water.
What’s more, water from your inhouse bottling system is designed to be more cost-effective than pre-packaged bottles of water – with still or sparkling water provided from your filtered water system at a typical cost of less than 5p per litre (versus buying bottled mineral water at a cost of more than 50p per bottle).
There is no better time than now to invest into a reliable water filtration system that not only reinforces your commitment to the environment but an investment into the health to your employees.
