Executive summary PRUPIM Interim Sustainability Report 2007
Welcome to the Executive Summary of our 2007 Interim Sustainability Report, which provides an overview of PRUPIM s sustainability performance during 2007. Early in 2007, we set our targets with a deadline of the end of 2008, and we have therefore decided this year to publish an Interim Sustainability Report to inform our stakeholders of our progress part way through the target period. Although the final deadline is still some way off, I am pleased to say that we are well on the way to achieving many of our targets. You can find more details of our progress on the Highlights and Lessons Learnt page, and on our website. Looking forward, there is still more work to do and we face a number of challenges including: Further developing and strengthening our environmental performance data monitoring, management and reporting processes; a major task for a portfolio the size of PRUPIM s. Achieving consistency worldwide in the standards we set across 1,000 properties, and over 6,000 property occupiers. Preparing for significant changes in the legislative framework as Energy Performance Certificates enter the market and we prepare for Carbon Reduction Commitments which could subject our portfolio to a cap and trade system of carbon accounting. To plan our response to these, and several other future challenges, we intend to review which sustainability issues are most material to our business (i.e. have an ability to impact on our financial bottom line) and to refocus our sustainability strategy in 2009 and beyond around a smaller number of business-critical issues. We are resolute in our ambition to exploit the opportunities offered by more sustainable business practices including the exploration of new markets, development of new products, and enhancing innovation and brand value. We hope you will find this Interim Report Executive Summary of interest. We particularly value your input to our sustainability efforts and would encourage you to give feedback on any aspect of our work including this report. Please email sustainability@prupim.com or call us on 020 7548 6866. Martin Moore Managing Director, PRUPIM Report Scope This 2007 Interim Sustainability Report Executive Summary and the Interim Web Report (www.prupim.com/2007sustainabilityreport) cover the period 1 January to 31 December 2007. They relate to our UK operations only and do not cover international investment, development or property management activities. The Executive Summary is intended to provide our stakeholders with an overview of key achievements during 2007 including an update against specific performance indicators. More indicators can be found in the web report. In 2009, we will be publishing a more comprehensive report on our final progress against 2007-08 targets. The environmental data included in this Executive Summary and the Interim Web Report generally relate to properties for which we have direct management control.
Development At the end of 2007, PRUPIM launched an industry leading development brief titled Sustainable Development: A Framework for Decision Making, which can be downloaded from our website. This framework now sits at the heart of our development process and aims to promote increased understanding of sustainability issues through informed debate amongst our design and construction teams. We also continued to develop on brownfield land. Of the 13.11 acres of land developed in 2007, The Hub in Birmingham, and Cunard House, Regent Street, London, were on brownfield land; a total of 9.31 acres. 71% of completed developments on brownfield land At The Hub, we turned a site contaminated by unexploded munitions, buried oil tanks and other environmental and health & safety hazards into a fully remediated site capable of accommodating a 150 million distribution warehouse centre. The remedial works took two years, and cost about 2 million. So far 30 of the 90 acres have been developed, with the potential to create up to 1,000 jobs. At the entrance to the site, The Gatehouse demonstrates a visible symbol of The Hub s commitment to the environment with a wind turbine and solar panels providing green energy. Investment Work continued on our Improver Portfolio during the year. PRUPIM conducted environmental and energy audits at all of the Portfolio s properties. The information provided in the audits will enable us to identify key performance indicators to measure the improvements we hope to see in the Portfolio s performance, reflected in the reduction of the Portfolio s environmental impacts. Some of the early lessons of the Improver Portfolio are already being shared; for example a document outlining low- and no-cost initiatives to reduce energy and water consumption and to increase the amount of waste sent for recycling was issued to Property Managers, Centre Managers and tenants, and in September 2007 the Centre Managers annual conference was based around the theme of sustainability in order to encourage implementation of lessons in traditionally the most challenging sector. For instance, at Waterside Shopping Centre in Lincoln, a survey was undertaken in order to replace all lights with new energy efficient fittings. Savings from this action could amount to 5,000 per annum and reduce CO 2 emissions by 36.1 tonnes, with a payback period calculated at just over 12 months. 100% of Improver Portfolio Properties had environmental and energy audits
Property Management PRUPIM continues to focus on improving the efficiency of electricity, gas and water purchased, ultimately reducing the absolute consumption of each. We also remain committed to increasing the amount of waste we recycle at our Managed Properties. Building Carbon Efficiency for Managed Properties* Water Efficiency at Managed Properties* Recycled Waste as a Proportion of Total Waste (by mass) at Managed Properties* Energy & Climate Change Shopping Centres and Managed Offices improved their building carbon efficiency by 18% and 12% respectively. These impressive positive performance trends are testament to our ongoing focus on energy reduction and the efforts of our property managers, operating within the continuous improvement framework set out by the ISO 14001 environmental management system. It is hoped that the Improver Portfolio will enable even further carbon efficiency improvements across all other PRUPIM properties as the lessons and low/no cost energy efficiency measures from these properties are implemented across the wider portfolio. Water Water efficiency at Managed Offices improved during 2007 although water efficiency in Shopping Centres deteriorated. We are hopeful that water audits undertaken at key Managed Properties in 2007 will identify ways in which we can continue to improve our water efficiency. Waste Our recycling rate at Shopping Centres was 3% lower than that achieved in 2006 although Culver Square, Colchester and Manchester Arndale all exceeded 35% recycling rates. Our recycling rate for Managed Offices was 2% lower than the recycling rate achieved in 2006. However, Holborn Bars, Longwater Avenue - Green Park, Wimbledon Bridge House, City Tower London, and City Place House all exceeded 35% recycling rates. We are mindful of the opportunities that exist to improve recycling rates at Managed Properties and will continue our work to improve waste management practices. *Please see the Interim Web Report for further details on data qualifying notes. our People Average per capita spending on training was 1,394 in 2007, an increase on 2006 spending of 49%. The increase in spending was partly reflected by a considerable investment in corporate wide training for staff, such as our business skills development programme, and a customer service training programme, rolled out in 2007 and 2008. Also, in our annual employee survey, Shaping Our Future, 73% of our employees agreed that PRUPIM s involvement in community and environmental activities brings business benefits - an increase of 7% from 2006. 1,394 average per capita spending on staff training and development
our Suppliers In 2007 PRUPIM continued to work with Buying Force to raise sustainability standards in our supply chain. Buying Force questioned its preferred suppliers on their sustainability credentials, and 77% of respondents said that they already had a sustainability policy in place. Buying Force is also encouraging all suppliers to adopt an environmental management system to a level equivalent to, or more demanding than, ISO14001. This will not only benefit PRUPIM, but also the suppliers themselves, and in turn their customers. In this way, PRUPIM and Buying Force are casting a positive influence more widely than just our own supply chain. 77% Buying Force preferred suppliers who responded to the survey and who have a sustainability policy our Communities Our community investment during 2007, measured by the London Benchmarking Group methodology, was calculated at just over 400,000, including cash and in-kind donations. PRUPIM staff also spent 1,165 hours volunteering for the benefit of communities, charities, non-governmental organisations, and causes important to them. Although time spent by PRUPIM staff on community investment programmes such as Prudential Grass Roots and Prudential 4 Youth has significantly reduced, due largely to a change in direction which has made these two programmes more strategic in their outlook, time spent in other volunteering initiatives has remained reasonably constant. For example, over the course of the year, three teams took part in volunteering activities as part of teambuilding events, creating a play area for a nursery in Central London, carrying out environmental improvements at a Local Nature Reserve in Doncaster, and working with colleagues from Prudential plc to create a garden for NCH premises in North London. 1,165 hours invested by staff in community programmes and volunteering
Highlights Lessons Learnt We reduced our CO 2 emissions (kgco 2 /m 2 ) from Shopping Centres and Managed Offices by 14% compared to the 2006 baseline. This means that we have succeeded in achieving our 2012 emissions reduction target four years ahead of schedule. PRUPIM's Sustainable Development Framework was launched which aims to promote increased understanding of sustainability issues through informed debate amongst design and construction teams. The emission of 55,000 tonnes of CO 2 was averted following the continuing purchase of green electricity across a large number of our Managed Properties. The procurement of a green electricity contract remains a key driver in PRUPIM's efforts to reduce our environmental footprint. There is evidence of growing satisfaction amongst our staff and they continue to feel positive about the business benefits of our involvement in community and environmental activities - demonstrated by improved scores in the Shaping Our Future survey. Whilst we have witnessed impressive environmental efficiency improvements in some areas, water efficiency at our Shopping Centres deteriorated over the year, compared to 2006. We are conscious of our commitment to improve our performance in all areas and will continue to work to deliver environmental improvements in the way that we use natural resources. The absolute value of community investment has fallen over the past year, in part a reflection of our renewed focus on strategic national projects. It will be important to ensure that this reallocation of funding does not detract from the excellent community work that already takes place at PRUPIM Shopping Centres. Recycling rates at both Shopping Centres and Managed Offices fell in 2007. This partly reflects the challenging and unpredictable nature of measuring and targeting waste recycling performance. However, we acknowledge the scale of this task, particularly in respect of Shopping Centres where we have committed to achieve a 40% waste recycling rate. In order to deliver against this target we have appointed a new national waste contractor to assist us in increasing recycling rates. Contact us sustainability@prupim.com Call 020 7548 6866 or visit www.prupim.com This document has been printed in the UK onto paper that was manufactured using Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) pulp. The paper is made from 50% recovered fibre and 50% virgin fibre and is certified by the FSC. The inks are vegetable oil based and meet the highest environmental standards. Cert no. SGS-COC-0620