The Stockport Sustainable Business Challenge – funded by Stockport Council and supported by Stockport Economic Alliance and the Business Growth Hub, part of MGC – saw winners receive grants of between £3,000 and £10,000 to cover up to 50% of the costs of purchasing and installing technology that will reduce their impact on the environment whilst delivering real economic benefits.

The competition reflects a growing understanding amongst the business community that improving resource efficiency not only reduces environmental impacts but also increases resilience and delivers a lasting cost benefit to the bottom line.

The competition attracted a diverse range of applications, but six projects were ultimately selected by the judges to receive funding. Between them the winning projects have invested over £80,000 in low carbon technologies. Over the next four years, these technologies will deliver nearly £100,000 in savings and cut carbon emissions by 250 tonnes – equivalent to driving from Manchester to the moon and back in a Hummer.

The winners include Creative Apparel Ltd, a manufacturer of branded workwear and promotional clothing, who received £10,000 for new automated cleaning equipment that improves both energy and water efficiency and is expected to save £6,800 a year.

Castrads Ltd, a producer of bespoke cast iron radiators, secured a £9,100 grant to replace 91 inefficient light fixings with high efficiency LEDs, which will save over £4,400 and 17 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) a year.

Other local winners were Cheshire Specialist Engineering, County Car and Van Rental, Red Rose Packaging and the charity, Disability Stockport.

Phil Millar, Managing Director at Creative Apparel, says:

“The new machine is a great addition to our production facility and one that we would not have been able to invest in without funding from the Stockport Sustainable Business Challenge. By introducing an automated system we have cut manual labour needed for cleaning and de-coating by 95 per cent, reduced health and safety risks and improved our resource efficiency.”

Nick Baylis, Director of Castrads Ltd, says:

“The Stockport Sustainable Business Challenge funding was a great opportunity for us to make immediate and lasting cuts to both our energy costs and environmental impact, and the expert support we’ve received from the Business Growth Hub will ensure that we continue to move forward and make more advances in future.”

Samantha Nicholson, Low Carbon Manager at the Business Growth Hub, part of MGC, says:

“The Stockport Sustainable Business Challenge is a great example of how we can work with Local Authorities to boost business growth and save carbon. It’s also a great way to raise awareness of the strengths of our low carbon technology supply chain in Greater Manchester, as all of the project’s contracts were won by local suppliers.”

Councillor Patrick McAuley, Executive Member for Thriving Economy at Stockport Council says:

“I am pleased that we have had the opportunity to support local businesses through the Stockport Sustainable Business Challenge. The ideas they identified have the potential to deliver significant environmental benefits, which will help improve the local environment for all residents, as well as reduce costs for each of the winners which will help as they plan for future growth.”

Wayne Jones, Chair of Stockport Economic Alliance and Senior Vice President - Business Unit After Sales at MAN Diesel & Turbo says:

“The competition shows how a relatively small investment in green technology can make a big difference for companies. I would encourage other businesses to explore changes they could make to positively affect the environment and ultimately reduce their operating costs.”

To find out more about the Business Growth Hub’s specialist Green Growth support, visit www.green-growth.org.uk.