Green Gown Awards 2017 - The University of Birmingham and UniGreenScheme - Winner

UniGreenScheme is the University of Birmingham's contracted asset resale service. During a one-year pilot project, UniGreenScheme has collected surplus equipment, processed it for sale and returned a share of the profits to the University. 

During its first year, the scheme collected 543 cubic metres of equipment - equivalent to 88 eight-yard builder’s skips. This means 27 tonnes of equipment has been saved from waste disposal and re-used – a staggering saving of c 88 tonnes in CO2.  

The University received over £15,000 from sales of equipment; with no associated monthly or annual “charges” for the scheme. An estimated 878 staff hours were also saved, from the dismantling and removal of equipment. Based on the University’s median hourly salary this equates to over £13,000.  

With additional savings of nearly £16,000 on the disposal of equipment – this means that the scheme has shown overall total net benefit to the University of £44,000.   

Top 3 learnings:

1 Redundant and outdated lab equipment is a waste resource, not a disposal problem. 

2 Allowing staff to sell surplus equipment through this project led to less cluttered and more efficient facilities. 

3 There are many barriers to selling surplus equipment but these can be overcome and the benefits are substantial. 

CO2t savings over the life cycle of the project:  

223 t over 4 years (Estimated) 

Videos

• University of Birmingham trials Unigreen Schemes (click to hide)