Grainger is a broad line, business-to-business distributor of maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) supplies and other related products and services. More than 4.5 million businesses and institutions worldwide rely on Grainger for products in categories such as safety, material handling and metalworking, along with services like inventory management and technical support. These customers represent a broad collection of industries, including commercial, government, healthcare and manufacturing. They place orders online, on mobile devices, over the phone and at local branches. More than 5,000 suppliers provide Grainger with 1.5 million products stocked in the company’s distribution centers (DCs) and branches worldwide.
Grainger strives to implement innovation and efficiency to achieve their sustainability goals. This includes assessing expanded facility recycling initiatives and business collaborations to reduce or eliminate superfluous waste streams, close material loops and spur additional innovation. Grainger is working to continually improve the recycling rate in their DCs by standardizing recycling processes and sharing best practices across their network. For example, teams are trained to use color-coded system to separate and bale materials such as cardboard, plastic wrap and metal, and are encouraged to share and test ideas for ongoing improvements. DC leadership receives monthly progress reports on recycling to help ensure transparency and accountability. Local DC facility managers also include recycling metrics as part of their annual performance goals. To learn more about Grainger’s sustainability initiatives, go to graingeresg.com.
Grainger’s 374,000 square feet DC in Roanoke, Texas was awarded the Silver Level TRUE Certification by achieving 39 credits. The facility in Roanoke has a diversion rate of 90.6% and was able to meet the highest and best use for 100% of the waste produced at the DC. Grainger has a partnership with Avangard Innovative, who played a large part in achieving this goal. This certification is a testament to the emphasis that Grainger has and will continue to put on sustainability and doing the right thing.
"A lot of this was possible because of culture. We constantly talk about recycling and reusing. We have advocates and ambassadors on the DC floor who are passionate about this. When a new hire hears about it from a peer who cares, it becomes much more real and tangible." - Coleman Johns, DFDC Facility Manager