Allianz to reduce plastic waste by nearly 2 tonnes a year with new initiative

Authored by Allianz

Allianz Engineering Inspection Services (AEIS) will reduce plastic waste by around 1.8 tonnes per year, thanks to a more environmentally friendly method of tagging equipment.

Allianz surveyors attach plastic tags (cable ties) to hundreds of thousands of items of plant, machinery and accessories each year, as part of its Tagcheck service, which allows engineer surveyors and customers to check at a glance when the next statutory inspection is due.

Steve Ford, Special Services engineering manager for AEIS said: “Both our own engineers and our customers indicated that we could reduce the amount of plastic we use to tag equipment in our inspections. Allianz takes its environmental responsibility seriously, so we wanted to do something about it.

“We embarked on a number of workshops with internal and external stakeholders, shortlisted numerous alternative materials for testing and started an evaluation programme. After extensive testing of the main tag we use, we had reduced the shortlist to one new type of tag. We then revised the design further, tested again, and came up with the solution – a light, strong and brightly coloured tag, which uses 81% less plastic than before.”

As well as replacing the cable ties, AEIS reviewed all of the other types of tags it used, and in most instances, will be moving to a more eco-friendly alternative – containing much less plastic, and using an alternative solution wherever possible.

Allianz Engineering Inspection Services will have fully transferred to the new tags by the start of 2022.

Carolyn Rich, head of brand marketing and social responsibility at Allianz Insurance said: “We are very happy to introduce this new initiative in our inspection business.

“The fight against plastic waste is something we have been supporting across the global business through different initiatives such as these as well as more recently with our partnership with the Sea Shepherd organisation.

“However, we know there is always more to do on a global scale so we’re continuously exploring new solutions, and engaging with third parties, to find out what else we can do to find a more sustainable way of doing business.”