Warp-It

Mostly reusable furniture, electrical equipment, fixtures and fittings, office consumables (such as stationery and ink jet cartridges), lab equipment, supplies and medical equipment- but any resource really. As long as it is legal it can be transferred.

Warp-It  makes it very easy for staff to give or get surplus items to/from other staff.

We use Warp-it because it helps the University to:

• reduce unnecessary purchases
• reduce waste
• save purchasing and waste disposal costs
• helps with building clearances
• reduces supply chain waste and carbon emissions
• improves collaboration between staff

You can see our latest performance here; www.warp-it.co.uk/company/universityofbirmingham

Even in efficient organisations unwanted furniture and equipment in good condition is being wasted, whether in storage and taking up valuable space or is just being thrown out.

Warp-It  enables the exchange of such items quick and easy through the electronic platform and in turn releases much needed office and storage space saving money and much more. 

Warp-It is easy to use and each “trade” is recorded, monitored and reported within the system.

To use the system a member of staff needs to register and this means that waste monitoring, carbon emissions and recycling information on each “trade” is recorded which allows the production of management reports and key performance indicators.  

There is a direct transfer of items between owner and claimant, so Warp-It removes the need for any intermediate storage. The system allows users to create a “wish list” of items they need and matches this with an owner who has such items available on the system.

If you are planning a clear out ready for a minor refurbishment in the future you can set a date when your items will become available to coincide when works commence. The claimant can collect these at a time to fit in with the owner’s plans.

We are currently working on Phase 2 of Warp-It which if approved will enable staff to take items home for personal use which are not claimed at the end of the “sale” period by staff for use at the University through Warp-It.

We are also exploring extending the system to allow external “trades” which would open our Warp-It platform to other universities, FE Colleges, Schools, local authorities and the NHS which will allow staff to give or get unwanted items – a greater opportunity to save waste and money.

In addition, we are looking into working with local charities so staff can pass on unwanted/claimed items to local charities or partners so they can benefit from our unwanted resources. 

Learn how to add an item here

Learn how to claim an item here

Warp-It webinars are quick online tutorials which you can attend from your desk. Click here for the next session

The claimant is responsible to arrange collection of the item/equipment. With smaller items this should not pose a problem or require transport and some departments/colleges will have access to a vehicle.

For larger items or where the claimant does not have access to a vehicle it may be possible to use the Portering Team. Please follow this link to request portering services.

It is the responsibility of the “owner” to ensure that items are described correctly and the guidelines are followed.  It is the “claimant’s” responsibility to ensure the item/equipment is safe and appropriate before using. All users must agree with the terms on registration with Warp-It and before a “trade” takes place.

Each item is given a purchasing or replacement value which is an average across the board of the cost of that item at public sector contract prices. Each item is also given waste disposal financial value related to its weight, using the average UK costs of disposal to landfill.  These figures are updated annually to take into account inflation and taxes and appear on our Warp-It home page as metrics.

Warp-It applies the well-established sector leading Community Recycling Network “Measure Your Treasure” document and each item is given an average weight. If the information is not available an average estimation is made. Every transaction/item that is reused is added to the running reuse total which is measured in KG.

Every item “traded” saves on carbon emissions because a new item does not have to be purchased. Department of the Environment, Fisheries and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) conversion factors allow organisations and individuals to calculate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions  from a range of manufacturing activities and enable us to convert activity into kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). Carbon dioxide equivalent is a universal unit of measurement used to indicate the global warming potential of one unit of carbon dioxide.

If you have any surplus items in your office get it added to the system, or if you are buying something this week search Warp-It to make sure someone else does not have it spare!

Visit our homepage here: www.warp-it.co.uk/company/universityofbirmingham Make sure you book mark it. Hit the big green button which says ‘register’ now. Once you register you will receive further instructions.

If you have any queries or require more information, please contact:

Email: recycling@contacts.bham.ac.uk

Ext. 45943

Frequently Asked Questions can be found here.