Since its inception, Aveflor has been committed to the idea of protecting the environment; therefore the production of its products takes place in so-called clean rooms, i.e., in air-treated spaces. Since 2024, Aveflor has been part of the Green Company project. Mr. Jiří, the founder of the company says:
“Despite the fact that we work with chemicals, we have always tried to choose raw materials and substances that are not harmful to the environment ‘‘
The first step the family took towards greener production was to switch from the now-banned halogen hydrocarbons to environmentally friendly propellants. For aerosols, Aveflor largely uses the BOV method, i.e. “bag on valve”, where compressed air or nitrogen is used as the propellant. No chemicals are used in the production process. Such chemicals, which cannot be avoided in the manufacture of health and cosmetic products, are then disposed of as hazardous waste by a specialized external company as part of an organized collection process.
Another ecological solution that Mr. Jiří has introduced in the company is a photovoltaic power plant. The family commissioned it at the beginning of 2023, it has an output of 150 kWp and its production will cover 30% of the company’s total electricity consumption. This will significantly save the company the energy consumption necessary for its operations, both in industrial production and for the operation of the office building lighting, heating, and so on. Mr. Jan, the son of the company’s founder and the current director of the company, adds that when purchasing the photovoltaic power plant, they considered not only the ecological but also the economic benefits. The latter gradually increased as electricity prices rose. In the future, the company would like to place photovoltaic panels on other buildings, but the investment options are currently focused on other priorities.
Since the company was founded, it has also owned a wastewater treatment plant. Initially, a small-scale treatment plant was built, but over time and with the increase in the number of employees, it was replaced by a larger biological treatment plant that monitors and controls wastewater, especially from toilets, cleaning products, etc. For the wastewater treatment plant, the main advantage is the use of its own water resources. Water is already less available globally and its prices are getting more expensive. Mr. Jiří points out that it is a good idea to prepare for the future in this respect, and ideally to have its own water sources that the company can use. At the moment, Aveflor uses water from its own wells for technological purposes, but soon it plans to introduce a system that will purify this water and allow it to be used as drinking water within the company.
Aveflor’s ecological mindset is also reflected in its fleet. Currently, the company owns 3 electric cars and charging stations that can charge up to 6 electric cars simultaneously. Although the company’s employees were initially apprehensive about electric cars, they gradually got used to this type of car. A big advantage is the ease of recharging using the charging station on the company’s property. In the future, Mr. Jan is planning further development in the field of electromobility and is also considering setting up a charging station for the general public.
Aveflor emphasises ecology in the choice of packaging materials and tries to find materials that are harmless or minimally burdensome to the environment. They have introduced the ISO 14 001 standard into their integrated quality management system, the application of which helps employees adopt an environmentally friendly approach in all company processes. The company is also currently working on an ESG policy within the company, on which they are cooperating with ČSOB Bank. The latter provides consulting services to family businesses on this topic.Mr. Jiří also mentions the positive feedback from employees:
“Today’s society is used to much greater working comfort, which means greater demands on electricity consumption, whether we are talking about heating in winter or air conditioning in summer. The introduction of photovoltaics has certainly contributed to the use of air conditioning units, for example.
Mr. Jiří also received positive reactions from other family members and has never encountered any resistance when making decisions. Mr. Jan confirms that even though the family members sometimes have different opinions, they clearly agree on all ecological solutions. He also admits that, for example, the state subsidy of CZK 200,000 per car played a big role in the decision to purchase electric cars.
Both the photovoltaic power plant and the wastewater treatment plant were implemented as subsidized projects. From the point of view of Mr. Jan, the initial phase – the preparation of the application for subsidy – was the most challenging when acquiring the power plant. The tendering procedure was very price-oriented and, thus, the selection of the supplier of the photovoltaic power plant was therefore adapted to this, which later proved to be not entirely reliable and delayed the completion of the building considerably. However, once completed, the photovoltaic power plant operates smoothly and achieves the planned parameters.
Mr. Jan adds the experience of a not entirely precise definition that they wrote in the application: ‘Just yesterday, for example, we were dealing with a power cut and we had written wrongly in the tender that the backup batteries should always start up at the moment of a power cut, i.e. that they should work as a backup automatically. But it’s not automatic in reality, and we can see now in hindsight that it would have been useful.” He also recommends preparing because the path from applying for a subsidy to starting up a PV plant is quite long. It is worth focusing on the choice of supplier, the quality of the workmanship, and the quality of the material the supplier uses. Aveflor points out that safety is also important in this respect, i.e. regular inspections and regular annual checks of the PV plant using a thermal imaging camera.
Project Coordinator:
Thomas Blum – RegioVision GmbH
blum@regiovision-sn.de
Communication and Press:
Kristýna Strnadová
strnadova@amsp.cz
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.