Edinburgh Airport trays set for departure to Africa

Above: Edinburgh Airport Control Tower.
Copyright Shutterstock

The trays were taken out of use at Edinburgh Airport earlier this year and will be reused in airports throughout the African continent, rather than being destroyed as the airport continues to improve its sustainability approach.

Many of the airports in Africa currently use improvised trays which can be unhygienic and take longer to process. The donation will greatly impact on the operation of these airports and will help the process of security screening run more efficiently.

The trays are in the process of being cleaned and distributed to Africa by The Westminster Group plc, a firm the airport partnered with after using the Circular Edinburgh programme which encourages companies to reuse and redistribute items where possible.

The airport has replaced the trays with new antimicrobial ones.

Gordon Robertson, Director of Communications and Sustainability at Edinburgh Airport said: “Reusing items rather than disposing of them is part of a circular economy that the airport wants to be part of as we continue to improve our sustainability approach, and reusing these trays has the added benefit of allowing staff in other areas of the world to train to the same high standard that our staff do.

“Using Circular Edinburgh to help us reach out to The Westminster Group is a good example of how firms can work together to make our businesses more sustainable and how we can have a positive impact on others.”

Paul Morton, Westminster’s Training & Compliance Director said: “Westminster are extremely grateful to Edinburgh Airport for the donation of this equipment. Its re-distribution will allow Westminster to enhance and provide additional support to developing countries and airports.”

Mayan Grace, Head of Projects at the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce said: “This is a fantastic example of Circular Economy in action and we were delighted to support Edinburgh Airport on their Circular journey and help to promote the reuse of these products.”

The Westminster Group plc is a trusted global brand that delivers strategic security solutions, managed services and first-class training to keep people safe and secure assets. They formed a registered charity, The Westminster Group Foundation, in 2014 to formally deliver support to developing countries: https://www.wg-plc.com/

Circular Edinburgh, managed by the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, is working to investigate the opportunities around the circular economy and the support on offer for business, helping the City of Edinburgh become more circular by encouraging local businesses to embed circular economy principles.