As society becomes aware that climate change is a real and irremediably everyday problem, the economy is moving steadily towards decarbonization that, far from being just an environmental issue, will become a key piece of the fourth industrial revolution. .
As it could not be otherwise, the biopharmaceutical sector is no stranger to these changes. In fact, more and more laboratories are choosing to implement “carbon neutral” or “0 emissions” strategies. We are at a time when large companies have already set these objectives for the next decade. So yes, we are in a time of change, here and now.
In this way, the decarbonization of the economy addresses several key aspects:
- Greater value of our products and services using fewer natural resources, either by reusing waste from other processes, by optimizing process resources or by the discovery of new materials and combinations between them. That is why it is increasingly common to see products that require fewer resources to be equally effective, a circular economy giving added value to waste, or the transition from batch processes to continuous processes.
- Less use of energy resources (for example, through the integration of heat exchanges), water and materials in buildings and infrastructure. Until now, these costs have been seen as fixed and inevitable, but the truth is that 2030 is approaching, the horizon in which all companies will have to report the emissions and impacts derived from their activity, and that is why More and more companies trust specialists in building sustainability consulting to assess and mitigate these impacts, or build their buildings following internationally known and valued methodologies such as LEED or BREEAM.
- Increase in the quality of life of people who carry out a certain economic activity. This involves having better and healthier environments inside buildings, while at the same time fewer trips are required (to the workplace, meetings, trips, etc.) and these are carried out more efficiently. Without a doubt, this increase in efficiency has been possible thanks to hyperconnectivity and ICT developed during the first 2 decades of the century.
- Impact value associated with investors. Increasingly, the financial sector is looking for investments aligned not only with financial benefit, but also with Impact value. This concept encompasses any positive impact in some aspect other than financial, such as the sustainable development goals of the United Nations (https://sdgs.un.org/goals). The implication of this on sustainability is direct. Activities that are carried out in a way that is respectful and compatible with the environment attract more attention and, therefore, more money.
In summary, as we stated at the beginning, the decarbonization of the economy is more than just the fight to reverse (or at least try to) climate change. It is a key piece of adaptability and resilience of companies to a new environment that, although imposed by the evident climate emergency, is still a new and exciting opportunity to take advantage of the paradigm shift that the fourth stage of the industrial revolution presents us with. .
This means that, for companies (and that includes biopharmaceutical laboratories), having an environmental sustainability policy is no longer an option, but has become an obligation. At Klinea we are aware of this paradigm shift and the future needs of our clients. For this reason, we offer sustainability consulting services within the biopharmaceutical sector, and we integrate these concepts into our designs.
If you are interested in learning more about sustainability and how we can help you, contact us: klinea@klinea
Articulo cortesía de nuestro partner especialista en sostenibilidad Caba Sostenibilitat y su director Xavier Saltó.
