Our sustainability credentials

Woodpecker and Williams Shipping - caring for the environment

The world is just waking up to the huge environmental damage caused by a global failure to look beyond private profit. Every organisation must act now to help the environment recover.  

Williams Shipping, Woodpecker’s parent company, is working both internally and with others to make choices that respect the environment, while continuing to deliver excellent marine and logistic services.

Environmental Management
The Williams Shipping group, which includes Woodpecker, is committed to measuring and improving its environmental impact, and has set up an environmental management system that establishes a ‘green’ culture across the business.

We have ISO 14001 accreditation, which demonstrates our commitment to environmental awareness and compliance with relevant standards, and measures our drive for continual improvement. It means our customers know that we are conscious of our impact on the environment, and managing our business to help the environment and reduce waste.

Driving high standards
Transport is widely understood to be one of the most polluting sectors in the UK, so the Williams Shipping group is taking major steps to reduce the impact of its haulage and logistics operations. These include:

• Ensuring that all trucks comply with the highest Euro 6 emissions standards for commercial vehicles,  limiting the quantities of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbon, nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emitted
• Refreshing all plant across the group to operate efficiently and minimise environmental impact – for example, most of the forklift trucks on our sites are now electric

• Reducing the impact of individual car journeys by running only electric or hybrid company cars.

Committed to renewable energy
Harnessing marine energy generates clean, sustainable electricity from waves, tides and offshore wind, making a significant contribution to a low carbon economy. The Williams Shipping group provides significant support to organisations and businesses in the renewable energy sector:

• Williams Shipping is a supporting member of Marine Energy Wales, which brings together technology developers, the supply chain, academia and the public sector to establish Wales as a global leader in sustainable Marine energy generation.

• Williams Shipping is a recognised supplier to the Port of Milford Haven at the heart of the UK’s energy supply and development industry, part of the £60 million Pembroke Dock Marine programme to develop Pembrokeshire as a global focus for zero carbon Marine energy innovation.  

• We are the logistics partner for Vestas Offshore Wind in the Solent.

• Williams Shipping Logistics has developed strong ties with companies in the Geothermal energy sector and battery storage infrastructure.  

• We also provide key services to the marine renewables industry from our bases in both Pembroke and Southampton, supporting and servicing renewable off-shore industry innovations, including wave, tide and wind energy projects.  

Cultural commitment
For Williams Shipping, respect for the environment is not just about demonstrating green credentials to improve our reputation and impress customers. We care about the world in which we live, and we know that even the smallest changes can make a difference.  

From choosing sustainable fuels to limiting waste we are engaging our employees and stakeholders in our mission to help build a more sustainable future. We hope you will join us.

Williams Shipping is Woodpecker’s parent company and provides marine and logistics services and vessel charter, and has divisions in road-based transportation, sales and distribution of marine lubricants, and sales and hire of shipping containers and site accommodation. It provides general road haulage services and specialist abnormal load handling, cargo handling and storage services across the UK and Europe.