Our new Group ESG Manager, Angeline Griffin, shares how her experience of cutting carbon emissions across more than 200 retail, distribution and manufacturing sites is helping Mecsia maximise sustainability outcomes for the group’s clients.

My journey to the facilities management sector has reinforced one truth: sustainability can’t be achieved in isolation. During 12 years in retail, we faced the frustration of ambitious sustainability goals undermined by real-world barriers; limited grid capacity, cautious landlords, and disconnected supply chains. Despite funding and intent, the system wasn’t set up for success.

These lessons carry across sectors. The same pattern repeats: isolated decision-making and  fragmented supply chains get in the way of ambitious commitments.  In Hard FM the problem manifests most frequently as a disconnect between those designing, installing, maintaining, and managing assets.

At Mecsia, our structure and culture is designed to overcome the disconnect and maximise sustainability outcomes for the tenants and landlords that we work for.

Collaboration, Not Competition

The most effective sustainability outcomes happen when landlords and tenants view their suppliers as partners, not just service providers. This means engaging everyone involved in the asset lifecycle, from the teams specifying and installing equipment to those responsible for maintaining and operating it over the long term.

For example:

• An installer might recommend a high-efficiency system, but without input from the maintenance team, future running costs or performance risks could be overlooked
• A solution may look cost-effective upfront, but long-term utility and maintenance costs may outweigh any initial savings

By bringing suppliers together early and often, landlords and tenants have the opportunity to design building solutions that align with how the space will be used, balancing capital and operating costs, asset longevity, and the impact on communities and the environment.

As a nationwide group of hand-picked inspection, testing and maintenance providers, Mecsia brings together project capability, maintenance expertise, and BMS analytics, all with a vested collective interest in ensuring the best sustainability outcomes for our clients and their residents, and users.

Our clients benefit from a single point of contact, seamless coordination through shared systems, regular joint site meetings, and full visibility from start to finish. The result? Cost savings of 10-20% compared to traditional approaches, and a simpler, more transparent experience, with better value built in.

A Holistic Approach to Building Sustainability

At Mecsia we believe buildings should be viewed as ecosystems, not projects. The goal isn’t just to install ‘green’ tech, it’s to create environments that support the well-being and productivity of users, and ultimately provide long-term value.

That requires:

• Aligning installation with maintenance insight
• Considering lifecycle cost, not just capex
• Partnering with suppliers to innovate, collaborate and succeed together

We believe sustainability is about more than just energy use, it’s about people, communities, and the planet. These are the pillars we aim to support and protect in everything we do. By adopting a holistic approach that considers how spaces are used and the people who use them we can improve comfort, performance, and sustainability in equal measure.

For example, applying Mecsia’s BMS analytics capability in line with these principles has helped our clients reduce temperature-related complaints by up to 40%, creating more comfortable working environments, and delivering significant energy savings. When we stop working in silos and start building together, we create spaces that truly work for everyone.

At Mecsia, we’re always happy to collaborate with client-nominated partners to ensure the right outcome and add value where we can. And as a nationwide group of specialist businesses delivering a full suite of technical services, we’re also uniquely positioned to offer truly end-to-end, lifecycle-based solutions and take full ownership. If you are looking for confidence that every project is approached with long-term performance, environmental impact, and operational efficiency all factored in from the start, we’d love to hear from you.