Sustainability
Hard porcelain and the environment go well together, as porcelain is made from only a few natural raw materials: quartz, feldspar and kaolin. Porcelain has an outstanding environmental balance sheet:
- It does not give off any harmful products, and it is durable
- It does not lead to mountains of rubbish, in contrast to disposable tableware
- It does not pollute the environment at the end of its lifespan
One of the greatest challenges remains the high level of thermal energy that is required for ceramic firing. BHS has fundamentally changed this technology in order to use as little of this energy as possible:
- Reduction in energy use by one third during the last 15 years.
- Introduction of quick fire technology and the use of light kiln furniture made from high-tech ceramics in order to reduce CO2 emissions. As a result of this, BHS does not have to take part in CO2 emissions trading.
- Filtering the flue gas to remove the only considerable polluting substance, fluorine in its gaseous compounds, since the beginning of 1990.
In so far as sustainable economic activity is concerned, BHS has succeeded in completely recycling all defective raw and semi-manufactured products, as well as taking a waste water treatment plant into operation, starting various energy and water saving projects and reducing the consumption of raw materials. BHS won the "Energy Efficiency Award 2008" in recognition for its reduction in electricity consumption.
BHS is a member of various committees of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce as well as other associations in order to ensure that it is always at the cutting edge of statutory and social requirements. BHS has regulated relevant production procedures in the form of guidelines, assigned responsibilities and conducts regular training courses in order to ensure that all production processes can take place without risk for both the workforce and the environment.
