Water is essential — both for keeping your business running smoothly and for protecting our shared environment. With droughts becoming an increasing reality across the UK, the risk of water shortages is growing. Such shortages can disrupt operations, raise costs, and damage customer confidence. Acting now to adopt smart water-saving habits will not only reduce your environmental impact but also strengthen your business’s resilience during dry periods. Severn Trent Water’s straightforward three-step framework — measure, minimise, maintain — offers a practical place to start.
- Measure: Know Your Baseline
First things first: get clear on how much water your business uses.
Use industry benchmarks to compare your usage. For example:
- Hotels: – 30 m3 per bed annually
- Offices & retail outlets: – 0.6 m3 per square metre annually
- Restaurants: – 0.05 m3 per cover
Monitor meters daily or weekly to spot spikes that could signal leaks or overuse.
- Minimise: Cut Waste Where It Counts Most
Reducing usage during drought isn’t just good practice — it may be essential to comply with restrictions.
- Fix leaks fast — dripping taps and faulty flushes can waste thousands of litres.
- Adjust cleaning routines — swap hosepipes for buckets, use trigger nozzles, and wash vehicles less often.
- Optimise equipment like dishwashers or cooling systems for water efficiency.
- Engage your team — make drought awareness part of staff briefings so everyone understands why water saving matters right now.
- Maintain: Sustain Long-Term Efficiency
Short-term cuts are important, but long-term habits keep you prepared for future shortages.
- Schedule regular inspections to prevent small problems from becoming big losses.
- Integrate water checks into standard maintenance tasks.
- Recognise and reward staff contributions to water-saving goals.
Implementing these measures can deliver significant benefits for your business. By reducing consumption and minimising waste, you lower bills and achieve cost savings. Proactive leak prevention and regular equipment upkeep help maintain operational resilience, reducing downtime and avoiding unexpected expenses. Additionally, demonstrating a commitment to conservation strengthens your sustainability profile, enhancing your brand image and fostering goodwill among stakeholders.
Adopting Severn Trent’s recommended measure, minimise, maintain strategy offers a simple yet powerful way for SMEs to bring down water costs—while boosting efficiency and environmental standing. Severn Trent Water
