Welcome back! As you may know, my goal is to educate and excite you about all that Goodwill does for our community and what it can possibly do for you and/or your business. If this is the first blog you have read in this series, please feel free to see how it all got started from my first entry here. [Read more…] about Goodwill Does What?!?!?!- LaVale State Highway Administration
Goodwill Does What?!- MFRI
Welcome back! My goal is to educate and excite you about all that Goodwill does for our community and what it can possibly do for you and/or your business! If this is the first blog you have read in this series, please feel free to see how it all got started from my first entry here. [Read more…] about Goodwill Does What?!- MFRI
Water, Water, Everywhere! – Horizon Goodwill goes Green!
If you would have told me when I was a kid, that selling water would be a multi-billion dollar industry, I would have never believed it. Although the water that came out of my parent’s garden hose did not have a fancy marketing campaign or Alpine Spring purity claims, it still seemed to do the trick. Times have changed… People are more discerning than ever and with over $60 billion in worldwide sales, it is big business. https://www.banthebottle.net/bottled-water-facts/
It is also a huge waste that has a global environmental impact. The amount of oil used in bottle production exceeds 17 million barrels annually and that does not even include the transportation! And the cost to the consumer?!?! If you get the recommended 8 glasses a day, you would have a tab of around $1,400 annually, compared to about $0.50 coming from your tap water! http://www.statisticbrain.com/bottled-water-statistics/
Horizon Goodwill recently decided to ditch our bottled water delivery service and go with an inline, filtered, hydration station at all of the administrative facilities across our entire territory. In addition to being the “green” choice, our organization will realize a significant cost savings through this program, in addition to producing great tasting water!
All of this is great news, but there is an additional benefit for our clients arising form the machines ease of use. Our old system was they typical 5 gallon water cooler. This required two hands to operate and the liability of lifting and replacing heavy 5 gallon jugs. This filling station requires no lifting. It has a sensor that knows when a bottle is in place which allows for single handed operation. This is a huge plus for those of our clients with mobility restrictions or other physical barriers that struggled with our old system. All current staff were issued an aluminum water bottle with our logo and mission statement stamped on it. There is even a space to write your name!
This system incorporates a display that keeps a running count of how many disposable water bottles we have saved. Within the first 10 days, we saved over 500 disposable water bottles. At this pace, we are on track to save over 18,000 within the first year! Saving money, being Eco-friendly and removing barriers for our clients. Who knew something as simple as installing a water station could do so much for an organization!
Goodwill Does What?! – United Way Day of Caring
Welcome back! As you may know, my goal is to educate and excite you about all that Goodwill does for our community and what it can possibly do for you and/or your business! If this is the first blog you have read in this series, please feel free to see how it all got started from my first entry here. [Read more…] about Goodwill Does What?! – United Way Day of Caring
Business Services Employee Spotlight-Brenda Wills!
Welcome back! My goal is to educate and excite you about all that Goodwill does for our community and what it can possibly do for you and/or your business! If this is the first blog you have read in this series, please feel free to see how it all got started [Read more…] about Business Services Employee Spotlight-Brenda Wills!
Goodwill Does What?! -HBP
Welcome back! As you may know, my goal is to educate and excite you about all that Goodwill does for our community and what it can possibly do for you and/or your business. If this is the first blog you have read in this series, please feel free to see how it all got started from my first entry here.
If you have lived in Washington County for a while, there is a good chance that you are familiar with this week’s featured business partner, Hagerstown Bookbinding and Printing Company (HBP). HBP has been around since 1903 and is now one of the largest independent printing companies in the Mid-Atlantic region. What you may not know is that since the late 1980’s, they have partnered with Horizon Goodwill Industries.
The relationship was initially formed when Horizon Goodwill began doing subcontracting work for HBP. Since it’s inception, it has blossomed into a much more robust partnership. In today’s environment we have full time HBP personnel working at our corporate facility in our warehouse area. They work alongside our clients who assist HBP with their fulfillment work. The larger the demand and scope of the project, the more hours our clients are able to work. This symbiotic supply chain solution benefits both organizations and we are thrilled to have this partnership!
Our clients work on assembling (a.k.a. kitting) packages that will go out to a variety of HBP’s customers. This type of work requires close attention to detail and gives our clients experience working as part of a larger assembly line type team. The Holiday season is obviously a big push in retail and our staff if gearing up for what looks to be another great year assisting HBP with this work! The jobs created here are a great proving ground for our clients and gives them a paycheck along the way.
There is also an additional group that helps get these packages prepared for final shipment to HBP’s end customers. Working alongside the HBP staff gives our clients a feel for open market competitive employment.
They work very well together and have created a great bond. Horizon Goodwill employee Katie Harrell really likes the work experience and stated, “We work together and laugh together. We are like family out here, not just a team.”
Thanks for reading! Please feel free to contact me with questions or comments regarding the blog or what our Business Services division can do for you! bmarks@goodwill-hgi.org