Bytes Document Solutions (BDS), the largest Xerox distributor in the world, and a division of Bytes Technology Group, has awarded its second Xerox Global Services (XGS) Environmental Award to the XGS site at the University of Pretoria. The XGS Environmental Award was launched by BDS in September 2011, and is part of a broader 'Go Green' awareness campaign.

XGS helps organisations optimise their printing infrastructure and streamline their communication and business processes to grow revenue, reduce costs and operate more efficiently.

The competition involves all XGS site print rooms in Johannesburg and Pretoria. The winning site was chosen for its neatness, environmental awareness, recycling, safety and commitment to sustainability. The XGS site team at the University of Pretoria best fulfilled all these requirements.

"The 'Go Green' campaign is a fun and engaging way to encourage our employees and customers to be more aware of how to manage an environmentally friendly business and reduce the impact on the environment by containing our carbon footprint," says Johan Basson, CEO of BDS. "This can be achieved by reducing energy use in operations as an important first step, and Xerox helps users to do that by offering energy-efficient product designs and solutions. In addition, responsible paper use and waste prevention management are key. The competition brings all these elements together."

Basson congratulated Magdalene le Roux, head of the university's XGS site, and her team for winning the award. "Environmental sustainability is about finding innovative ways to eliminate unnecessary printing and reducing carbon footprint, power usage and waste," says Basson. "The XGS team at University of Pretoria should be very proud of their achievement."

He noted that BDS was committed to helping organisations discover ways to commit to sustainability and reduce the impact of their document management processes. "By engaging customers, sustainability programmes can be extended and magnified, enabling our entire group of companies to reduce our environmental footprint," says Basson.