Atlanta — As of December 31, 2015, Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc. (ARG) reached 15.2% total energy reduction per company-owned restaurant from a 2011 baseline, exceeding the “15 Percent By 2015” energy savings goal set by the brand in 2012.
Arby’s also achieved an 8.6% reduction in water consumption per company-owned restaurant from 2011-2015. The decrease in energy and water use during this time period resulted in $20.4 million of energy-related cost savings. Energy efficiency is a key component of Arby’s ResourceFULL® pillar, which is part of the brand’s corporate social responsibility platform.
“At Arby’s, we are committed to employing efficiency measures that save both energy and costs,” says Paul Brown, CEO of Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc. “By exceeding our energy savings target, we’ve shown that there are considerable energy and water savings opportunities in the restaurant industry and we will continue to find new ways to further reduce energy and water use in our restaurants.”
The energy consumption savings realized by ARG from 2011-2015 includes a 21% reduction in electricity use per company-owned restaurant and a 2.5% drop in natural gas consumption.
The efforts driving these savings are part of the Arby’s “Efficiency Matters” program, launched by the brand in 2012 to improve efficiencies in restaurants and reduce energy consumption and associated environmental and community impacts.
The program began with behavioral shifts, optimized on and off schedules and the implementation of an energy management system, and has evolved into long term investment projects like the replacement of HVAC units, ovens and fryers to more energy-efficient models. In 2015, Arby’s exterior lighting program received two awards from the Lighting Energy Efficiency in Parking (LEEP) Campaign: “Highest Percentage Savings in a Parking Lot (Retrofit)” and “Best Retail/Commercial Parking Facility.”
Vital to Arby’s energy efficiency efforts are strategic partnerships across the sustainable energy and water landscapes, including Ecova, Powerhouse Dynamics, Regency Lighting and Weathermatic, among others. Additionally, Arby’s has committed to making the entire company-owned portfolio of restaurants (3.1 million square feet) 20% more efficient by 2020.
On the development front, Arby’s is able to implement many of the energy-saving equipment upgrades into ongoing restaurant revitalization efforts. During 2015, Arby’s opened 69 new restaurants system-wide including 60 new restaurants in the U.S. — the highest number since 2008. Arby’s also remodeled 179 restaurants across the system as part of restaurant revitalization efforts.
Arby’s, founded in 1964, is the first nationally franchised sandwich restaurant brand, with more than 3,300 restaurants worldwide. Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc. is the parent company of the franchisor of the Arby’s brand and is headquartered in Atlanta. For more information, visit Arbys.com.
SOURCE: Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc.