The Environment and Safety

The health and well-being of our employees and our neighbours in the communities in which we operate is of great importance to us. Our goal is to be an industry leader in environmental, health, and safety performance, and we manage our businesses accordingly.

We aim to support organisations which foster improvements to air and water quality, waste minimisation, conservation, recycling and reuse.

Recent projects include:

The London Schools Hydrogen Challenge

Air Products is a member of The London Hydrogen Partnership, a project aimed at promoting cleaner energy.

As part of the project, The London Schools Hydrogen Challenge has been introduced with the aim to educate the younger generation about cleaner energy, specifically hydrogen technologies and their applications. As a member of the partnership, Air Products has pledged its support.

Schools are provided with a range of online teaching resources that support the National Curriculum and help teachers integrate the subject into lessons.

Air Products donated funds for an interactive whiteboards as a prize for the launch event and the top prize of £1,000 for the winning school, for the Grand Final in 2008.

Local wildlife

Air Products has a longstanding relationship with Surrey-based Wildlife Aid, a charity dedicated to treating, caring for, and rehabilitating animals back into their natural environment.

The charity’s core values incorporate the importance of preserving the planet and they play an active role in educating future generations about the environmental issues that affect us all.

In addition to sponsorship, we activlely support the charity in many different ways. A great example of this in action is Wildlife Aid's 2008 Open Day, in which Air Products not only sponsored the event but also worked with the 2nd Fetcham brownie group to raise extra funds. Selling home made bird seed holders and animal shaped cakes at the Open Day, the brownies managed to help Wildlife Aid raise a record £22,000 as well as working towards their wildlife explorer badge.

Supporting school's

Supporting school's in their 'green' endeavours is an important part of Air Products' community relations activity. Recently Ashley C of E Primary School in Surrey received sponsorship for their Year Six class to go on an exciting trip to the shrinking glaciers of Chamonix, France.

Ashley Primary have a strong environmental focus and is one of only a handful of schools that the National College for School Leadership has chosen to lead the way in sustainability. The Chamonix trip gave the children strong educational messages, aligned with National Curriculum requirements, as well as allowing them to see first hand the effects of global warming.

Our relationship hasn't stopped with the sponsorship money. Air Products' science and environmental ambassadors visited the school to perform interactive science experiments to the children. The demonstrations also explored key environmental concepts such as global warming, sustainability and renewable fuel.

Commenting on the partnership, Ashley C of E primary school's headmaster Richard Dunne said, “It is clear our pupils are concerned about being green and protecting the world we all live in. Our aim is to harness that enthusiasm through innovative activities such as Air Products’ environmental, science demonstrations and exposure to unique experiences like the trip to Chamonix’s moving glaciers.

You can find out more about the children's trip by viewing their blog: http://chamonix.ashleyschool.org.uk.

Local grounds get a makeover from Air Products Employees

In an effort to help protect and maintain our local countryside, a group of Air Products’ engineers worked with Elmbridge Borough Council on a community conservation project.

The engineers tidied the grounds, removing ‘Himalayan Balsam,’ and the Rhodoendron, both troublesome plants that have the potential to take over vast areas of woodland very quickly. They also installed a new oak bench in the area.

Dave Page, Countryside Estates Officer at Elmbridge Borough Council commented:

“We rely on volunteers for much of the work we do. The countryside in this area is a great asset and to maintain it takes a lot of work. We are very impressed with Air Products proactive approach and welcome any other volunteers who want to help.”