PEOPLE & PLANET

Starting point

Almost every company claims to be sustainable and social, but anyone who really contributes to a better world and can be transparent about it is only credible.

We believe that besides profit, a company can, or even should, take people, the environment and society as its starting point. Not profit with an edge of meaning, but meaning through profit. We have laid this down in our articles of association. We want to go beyond damage limitation: we want to improve the well-being of people and the world. Now and in the long term. We live in a special era with an incredible opportunity and necessity to improve the world: we want to lead the way in this and inspire and involve all our stakeholders. It is not a woolly thought: sustainable companies almost without exception outperform their competitors.

This also follows our choice to only work with brands that meet these standards:

• No forced labour, discrimination or child labour;
• A salary that covers basic needs;
• A healthy and safe working environment and no excessive overtime;
• Employment contracts are legally and in writing.

KPI's

To assess how we perform in the field of sustainability, we have determined a number of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). They are built into our CRM system, making them continuously observable. We can currently read the following::

Travel distance

We have mapped out where their main production takes place for all our suppliers. This makes it quite easy to map out how far our products have to travel. In the past 5 years we have reduced this travel distance from 734 to 158 kilometers. This is because we increasingly use customization. Small, local companies make the most beautiful lighting solutions. In addition, working with European brands has another advantage: if something breaks, the item can be returned for repair. Something that of course does not work if the product comes from a low-wage country far away.

Warranty

Most of our suppliers give a 3 year warranty on the fixture and 5 years on the technical components. We are working with various suppliers to extend this term by registering the products. The condition is that they are placed professionally. We monitor the warranty period of all our products and strive to increase the average term. That means choosing quality brands that offer a good warranty period. This requires a clear message to customers by not only looking at the purchase price, but also at Cost of Ownership.

Energielabel

Door de energieprestatie te meten van onze producten kunnen we ze uitdrukken in een gemiddelde waarde. De hele industrie werkt mee om de energieprestatie van armaturen te vergroten. Energie prestatie is niet zaligmakend, je kunt deze niet los zien van de toepassing waarin een armatuur wordt gebruikt.

Three pillars

Smart design

Sustainability starts with the design. The human eye absorbs most of the information about the environment through the eye. Light is not only the condition and medium for seeing. By its intensity, distribution and properties, it creates specific conditions that influence our perception. The arrangement of luminaires should not be regarded as a purely technical or functional process. There is no direct correlation between fixture layout and light effect. It requires knowledge and experience to ensure that the richest possible image is created with as few fixtures as possible. We want to avoid unnecessary or incorrect fixtures as much as possible. We strive to use the most effective light fixtures in the right place.

Sustainable products

Despite our large collection of over 300 brands, we are very selective. A brand must add something essential to the collection and must be made under good conditions. A first check is the Supplier Code of Conduct (SCoC) that we ask our supplier to complete. We are in the process of shaping a further segmentation that will give our customers even better insight into the conditions under which products are made. Fortunately, good conditions also often mean that quality components are used. Read more about this in our SCoC.

Replacable components

The lifespan of a light fixture is determined by the quality of the components used. That is why we strongly urge our suppliers to provide insight into which make of drivers, LEDs, reflectors and lenses they use. This tells us a lot about the quality of the fixture and the light it will produce.

The driver usually has the shortest lifespan and will break down first (fortunately only after at least 50,000 burning hours). Where possible, we choose models where the individual components are interchangeable, so that the lifespan of the luminaire can be greatly increased. By interchangeable we mean on location or at the place of origin, so repair by the manufacturer itself. Private label luminaires from low-wage countries are attractively priced, but are often made with inferior quality components and usually these components cannot be replaced. Cost of Ownership and environmental impact are ultimately unacceptably high.

MVO

Pro Bono Light Club

Brink Licht has regularly contributed to the Ronald McDonald children's fund for more than 10 years. This was the starting signal to formalize this together with other lighting companies in a widely supported initiative to support social charities. Read about the Pro Bono Light Club here:

Individual deployment hours

Every Brink Licht employee may take paid leave to work for a charity of their choice. The condition is that a minimally proportional part is used in one's own time. It's nice to hear from each other who supports which goals and in what way.

Recycling

Cradle to cradle

• We use products that are designed and manufactured in such a way that materials remain available for re-use and that defective parts can be replaced;
• Products in the technical cycle are valuable raw materials for new products;
• No harmful waste is produced during production.

LightRec

Brink Licht is affiliated with the LightRec Foundation and has three different collection bins where consumers and professionals can hand in their old lamps and fixtures for recycling. Small electrical appliances, batteries and, for example, fluorescent tubes can also be returned to us for professional recycling.

Label

Our shipments are provided with the sticker below that indicates what is in the shipment and how residual material can be recycled. Logical and convenient!

 

Lease

Lease lighting

That you can save a lot on your energy bill with LED lighting is something many entrepreneurs know by now. Replacing defective light sources also belongs to the past. However, it requires a significant investment and the necessary knowledge when you choose quality. For entrepreneurs who prefer to use their working capital in a different way, Brink Licht now offers the possibility to lease energy-efficient lighting against a fixed amount and thus save considerably on lighting costs.

Light as a Service

Brink Licht has been offering Lighting as a Service (LaaS) since 2015. This service for companies starts with the preparation of a custom lighting design. We use light fixtures that we offer through a lease subscription instead of a one-off payment. We work carefully: Our lighting consultants make an inventory of your wishes, examine the room(s) and develop a customized plan. Spots on rails are often the best option for showrooms and shops, catering establishments, offices and galleries, because they offer flexibility: they are an important part of the lighting plan. We offer the possibility to choose high-quality spots that are designed and produced in the Netherlands with a lease contract. We have developed a tool that allows us to quickly calculate what the lease costs will be on the one hand and savings on electricity costs and replacement costs on the other: this works quickly and easily and offers immediate insight into the savings. After the lease period of between 24 and 60 months, we take back the light fixtures. These are designed in such a way that damaged or obsolete parts can be easily replaced, in full accordance with the principles of the circular economy. The selected spots have a timeless design and are made of high-quality aluminum. Due to this cradle-to-cradle design and the high quality, we offer a full warranty during the lease period. The fixtures have a significant residual value after the lease period, which is why you only pay on part of the purchase value.

Lighting as a Service

• Financing up to 100% of the total costs of the LED spots: so no or very low initial investment;
• Start saving electricity immediately, often the costs of financing are lower than the savings on energy;
• Less heat emission;
• You no longer have to buy and install expensive light sources. All service and maintenance is included;
• First-class service, because the products used are very durable: if a malfunction occurs during the lease period, we replace the lamps as soon as possible and free of charge;
• After the contract period, we take the products back. They are then checked, cleaned and equipped with the latest generation of LEDs;
• Products have a long lifespan;
• Custom-made lighting design from our studio design team who know how to get the most out of a space.

Customers interested in LaaS will receive a proposal within 48 business hours. At the moment we only offer LaaS to business customers in the Netherlands. We finance projects from €5,000 to €150,000.

Energy-saving

Products used in our LaaS offer are mostly designed and produced in the Netherlands. Our manufacturers combine high-quality materials with standardized LED modules and components. This is important because it must also be possible to use new generations of light sources in the coming decade, so that our spots will not become technologically obsolete. By combining timeless design and high-quality metals with sustainable light technology, we can guarantee the long life of the products used. This has resulted in a collection of highly efficient luminaires that meet the internationally recognized A-label in energy efficiency.

• Lifespan: LED bulbs have a lifespan that is up to 10 times longer than CFLs, and much longer than typical incandescent bulbs;
• Durable: because LEDs have no filament, they can withstand shocks and bumps better;
• Heat: LEDs give off relatively 20x less heat than incandescent lamps. This also reduces air-conditioning costs;
• Mercury-free: no mercury is used in the manufacture of LEDs;
• More efficient: LED lights use only 2-33 Watts of electricity (1/3 to 1/30th of incandescent or compact fluorescent). Luminaires with LEDs save electricity, stay cool and save on replacement costs;