London-based camera and lighting rental house Pixipixel is taking proactive steps to reduce its impact on the environment. Ninety percent of its vehicles and all generators have switched from diesel to lower carbon fuel.
Pixipixel is one of the first rental companies to transition from traditional fuels to Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) for its operations. Synthesised from waste cooking oils such as rapeseed and sunflower, HVO is considered significantly better for the environment when compared with diesel.
Because it’s 100% renewable, biodegradable and non-toxic, HVO causes less pollution and helps to improve air quality. This type of fuel can reduce carbon emissions by a substantial 90%. After assessing the company’s diesel usage for the past twelve months, it is estimated that Pixipixel will have created significant greenhouse gas reductions, preventing approximately 105,000 kg of CO2e from entering the atmosphere annually.
One of the challenges associated with the transition to HVO was its limited availability in the UK so Pixipixel has installed an onsite tank that is capable of storing thousands of litres of fuel at its facility in Tottenham, North London. The rental house also chose to rely only on suppliers with fuel certified to the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC).
Pixipixel’s managing director Steve Knight says: “At Pixipixel we’re delivering measurable emission reductions by converting to HVO. We are committed to continually reducing our carbon footprint. Technology, timelines and costs are currently prohibitive for us to convert our fleet to zero emission vehicles. The suitable vehicle simply doesn’t exist yet. In the meantime, we see our transition to HVO fuel as a big step on our path to Net Zero. We hope all suppliers to the film and advertising industries who have their own fleets and generators follow our lead and we’re happy to collaborate and assist others in achieving this.”
Pixipixel’s intention is to become a net zero carbon organisation by 2030. To underpin this goal, the rental house has already implemented a number of green initiatives to improve its operations, running more sustainably. Pixipixel’s facilities are run on 100% renewable electricity, they provide Climate Change & Sustainability training to their workforce to create the culture shift needed to ensure each business decision is rooted in sustainable thought and have created an employee-led emission reduction plan for each department in the business for 2022.
