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Sustainability - Melanie Harris

Congratulations to Melanie Harris from our Bunzl Safety & Lifting Perth Branch, who was recognised as the global winner of the “We Believe” Individual Award for commitment to sustainability.

Mel was chosen from 21,000 employees across the Bunzl Group for her tireless work with one of our largest customers, Fortescue Metals Group, in the quest to reduce plastic from their supply chain. Working with multiple Bunzl APAC business units, Melanie has introduced a range of initiatives that has exceeded her customer’s expectations.

The award meant that Mel travelled to South Africa to experience firsthand one of the many environmental and social initiatives that Bunzl engages in globally.

She joined Bunzl PLC Global Head of Sustainability, James Pitcher at the Bunzl Waste Entrepreneurial Challenge, a joint project initiated with Bunzl and our charity partner WasteAid.

“I was blown away by the passion and commitment of the WasteAid members, who are all such lovely people and so passionate about their business. The work that WasteAid is doing in marginalized communities is beyond inspiring” said Mel of her meetings with the WasteAid team.

WasteAid, in partnership with a local charity “The Wot-if Trust?”, had run a 12-week course for 20 young Wastepreneurs”, teaching basic business acumen.
These young people work in the informal waste collection sector, which is responsible for 90% of all waste collection in South Africa. At the end of this 12-week course, the participants all made a pitch to gain funding and equipment for their businesses, supporting and enhancing their capabilities. They would share in a 10,000GBP grant provided by Bunzl PLC; money that would be life changing for the cohort.

As Mel noted following the presentations, “To witness these wonderful people strive to make a better life for themselves and their families; and to see such joy and pride shine through…it will stay with me forever”.
With an amazing level of enthusiasm and ideas on show it was no surprise that all participants succeeded in gaining support.

The contrast between Mel’s work in Australia and the Bunzl partnership with WasteAid serves to remind us all that there are many different ways to tackle the challenge of sustainability. It also illustrates Bunzl’s ongoing to commitment to environmental and social issues. These initiatives will have a lasting impact and there is an opportunity for us all to contribute. In Mel’s own words,

“The partnership is impacting people’s lives; we saw this first-hand. I have never been prouder of the company and can’t stress enough how crucial it is that we continue to support charities in this manner. I plan to continue to grow awareness in Australia and would ultimately strive to work on programs here or even abroad. Sustainability is my passion, whilst not technically my role at Bunzl.”

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About Bunzl Safety and Lifting

Bunzl Safety and Lifting offers an integrated approach to the selection, supply, service, and replacement of safety products, resulting in our ability to manage the complete life cycle of your personal and workplace safety requirements. Bunzl Safety and Lifting is a leading manufacturer of safety products, we provide the very best in workwear, corporate wear, PPE, footwear, materials handling, load restraint, and recovery,height safety, and site safety. We are also a leading supplier of some of the best industrial safety brands on the market, including Mack, Ninja, Contego, Boomerang, Beaver, B-Safe, WS Workwear, Frontier, Black Rat, Robertsons, 3M, Honeywell, Ansell, Bolle Safety, DuPont, Donaghys, MSA, Moldex, Steel Blue, Oliver, uvex, Sqwincher, MaxiFlex, DNC Workwear, Mayo Hardware, Gunnebo Industries, Skylotech and Blundstone. We also offer a range of services including product specialisation and consolidation, custom embroidery and branding, lifting equipment and inspections, NATA Accredited testing and services, height safety installed systems and training, managed inventory, eCommerce and digital solutions, clothing fitouts and yearly uniform issues, ethical sourcing, Indigenous Engagement, and environmental responsibility. We have an Australia-wide network of branches that ensures fast shipping across the country.

Bunzl Brands & Operations Pty Ltd (BBO) located at 55 Sarah Andrews Close Erskine Park NSW 2579 quality scope covers: manufacturing, importing, wholesaling, repairing and testing of lifting, rigging equipment, winches, hoists and materials handling products. The manufacture of synthetic slings and webbing products including load restraint and height safety equipment. Manufacture, import, wholesale and distribution of PPE products, workwear and hand tools. Design and development of products and services and the provision of mechanical testing services.