At Skelf Frames we're committed to improving our processes and tooling to help the environment. 

As picture frames contain glass and shipping glass is incredibly difficult due to how couriers treat and handle packages, we have to ensure we package them well enough to withstand the journey so that they arrive safely with our customers. Returns and replacements cause more pollution and waste due to distance vans have to travel.

Bubble Wrap

This does mean we have to protect against the couriers breaking the glass in our frames which involves using a lot of bubble wrap, more than other packages would normally require. Some customers have been dissatisfied with the amount of plastic bubble wrap we have to use. 

We're looking at options to reduce our plastic usage and alternatives to bubble wrap! We've looked at bio-degradable bubble wrap. However this option actually causes a high level of pollution also, bio-degradable plastics are not widely recyclable, they also release methane as they decompose, and don't fully decompose so end up causing micro plastic issues in the seas and rivers. 

At the moment we're experimenting with corrugated cardboard as protection to our frames. Cardboard is widely recycled and easy to dispose of, however it doesn't offer the same level of protection as bubble wrap so we do have to use more of it, we also see a higher percentage of breakages which means we have to replace, resend and send more material out to customers. 

We also suggest our customers keep the bubble wrap for their own use later on instead of disposing of it in general waste. 

Recycled Cardboard

For 90% of our parcels that we ship out, we use recycled cardboard to package them. Our cardboard comes from one of our main suppliers that they would usually dispose of. We collect this cardboard once a month and make use of it to make our own boxes. This keeps the price down for the customer and reducing waste by recycling cardboard. 

Machinery 

We're investing heavily in state of the art latest machinery for our production. New machines are more energy efficient, faster and produce higher quality products. Benefiting the environment and our customers.