Founded in 1898, Ernest Doe, the well-known agricultural, construction and groundcare machinery dealer recently celebrated its 125th anniversary! The family-run business, which first started as a blacksmiths in Essex, is now a leading supplier of agricultural, construction and groundcare equipment in the UK. In this historic year for Ernest Doe, the company has made tracks towards carbon reduction goals thanks to their partnership with sustainability-focused Slicker Recycling along and their lubricating oil partner PETRONAS. The fifth-generation family-run business is working closely with Slicker Recycling to reduce their carbon footprint whilst contributing to the circular economy, including re-refining Ernest Doe’s used lubricating oil. These goals will be achieved through carbon-efficient and sustainable waste management.
Ernest Doe’s Sustainability Commitment
The environmentally-minded machinery dealer group has long been committed to responsible business practices and continually strives to improve their environmental performance. Ernest Doe has always worked closely with the UK’s farming community and therefore has a pro-active approach to protecting the environment. Throughout the business, Ernest Doe looks to minimise the production of waste where possible and encourages colleagues to think about how waste is managed. Now, thanks to their partnership with Slicker, Ernest Doe has taken further steps to reduce their carbon footprint.
A Slicker Solution
We were delighted when PETRONAS introduced us directly to the decision-makers at Ernest Doe.
Across their 19 branches located in East Anglia and the Southeast, Ernest Doe generates various types of hazardous workshop waste through the servicing of vehicles and machinery. These include used lubricating oil, waste oil filters, surplus antifreeze, oil-contaminated packaging, and batteries, both lead-acid and lithium-ion.
Slicker Recycling offers a comprehensive solution for ALL these waste streams, helping to simplify and consolidate Ernest Doe’s waste management requirements under one Slicker roof.
Not only this, Slicker also aligns with Ernest Doe’s commitment to sustainability. Slicker has a zero-waste-to-landfill policy and strictly adheres to the Waste Hierarchy Model, prioritising the prevention, re-use, recycling and recovery of waste (respectively), over its disposal. And that’s even before we talk about what happens to the oil …
Waste oil to base oil: a sustainable way of thinking
In the used lubricating oil industry, Slicker leads the way in sustainability. And now Ernest Doe can lead the way for agricultural machinery dealers too.
Thanks to Slicker’s state-of-the-art facility, the used oil collected from Ernest Doe sites is re-refined back into a high-quality base oil product. This product is then used in the production of new lubricating oils.
Unlike other UK service providers for waste oil – which generally only produce low-grade, carbon-emitting Processed Fuel Oil (PFO) to be burnt in the marine and energy sectors – Slicker’s approach is helping to preserve a valuable, finite resource. Through this process, Slicker can support Ernest Doe to contribute directly to the circular economy.
In addition to preserving resources, Slicker’s waste-oil-to-base-oil approach is the most carbon-efficient outlet for the UK’s used oil producers. Through partnering with Slicker, each year Ernest Doe will be saving over 37% of the carbon emissions associated with their used oil. That’s enormous! In real terms, the agricultural machinery dealer will cut their carbon output by approximately 55,000 kg annually. That’s equivalent to the annual carbon absorption of 2,200 mature trees!
Ken Smyth, General Manager at Ernest Doe says of their partnership with Slicker Recycling,
“As a business that works closely with the UK’s farming community, we are truly committed to minimising our businesses impact on the environment. By partnering with Slicker Recycling, we have found the most environmentally sustainable route for our workshop waste and have managed to make significant reduction in our carbon footprint.”
National Sales Manager at Slicker Recycling, Sean Thorpe says,
“It is great to be working alongside a business that is as committed to sustainability and environmental protection as we are at Slicker. Thanks to our new partnership, we will work together reducing carbon emissions, contributing to the circular economy, and committing to a zero-waste-to-landfill policy.”
It’s fantastic to see Ernest Doe, an institution of British farming, focus on improving their environmental footprint in such as significant way and partnering with Slicker Recycling, which places reducing carbon emissions at the heart of its business.
