Kingfisher Power Tools Instructions
- June 11, 2024
- KingFisher
Table of Contents
Kingfisher Power Tools
Specifications
- Product Type: Power Tools
- Motor Type: Brushless
- Usage: Cordless and Corded
- Environmental Focus: Energy Efficiency and Reduced Environmental Impact
Product Usage Instructions
Importance of Choosing Efficient Power Tools
- Power tools, especially those used for longer periods or daily by professionals, should prioritize energy efficiency to reduce environmental impact and save on electricity costs.
Brushless vs. Brushed Motors
- Brushless motors are more efficient than brushed types as they generate less heat and transfer more energy to drive the motor, leading to longer usage time between charges and increased durability.
Cordless Power Tool Efficiency
- Opt for cordless power tools with brushless motors and shared batteries to maximize resource use efficiency and reduce environmental impact.
Switching to Electric Garden Power
- Transitioning from petrol to cordless electric garden tools can significantly reduce carbon emissions and pollutants, contributing to a greener environment.
FAQ
- Q: What criteria must power tools meet to be marked with a green star?
- A: Power tools must have a brushless motor and meet specific green star program entry requirements to be marked with a green star.
- Q: How are Green Star products assessed?
- A: Green Star products are evaluated based on Kingfisher policies, a watch list of disqualifying criteria, and considerations outlined in the Sustainable Home Product Guidelines.
- Q: What is the focus of the green star assessment for power tools?
- A: The assessment focuses on the in-use phase of the product’s life cycle, excluding products with harmful environmental aspects during manufacture or disposal.
Introduction
What it means to choose a Green Star product
Products marked with the green star are designed to help customers identify
items within our ranges with a focus on reducing environmental impacts.
Customers can use the information provided to filter and understand more about
the products they’re interested in or have purchased.
Why choosing efficient power tools matter
- Although most power tools are used for a short time, they still use electricity so energy efficiency should be considered. For tools used for longer periods, like lawnmowers, or every day by tradespeople, energy efficiency is even more important.
- For cordless power tools, brushless motors are more efficient than brushed types. In a brushed motor, friction creates heat and results in less energy being transferred to the motor. Less friction in a brushless motor means that more energy is transferred to driving the motor. This can mean more usage time between charges. The lower temperature also helps with a tool’s durability, as it’s less wear on the components.
- As well as choosing a brushless motor, opting for a bare tool with a shared battery can help reduce the tool’s resource use. When assessing the life cycle of a cordless drill, Kingfisher found that one of the largest impacts of the tool’s manufacture arose from the battery and charger.
- For garden power, switching from petrol to cordless electric tools can help reduce carbon emissions from using the tool, as well as address the levels of pollutants (including nitrogen oxides and particulates).
- Both brushed and brushless power tools are widely available for sale.
How we assess Green Star products
Before assessment, every Green Star product must meet:
- All relevant legal requirements
- All Kingfisher policy requirements
You can access the Kingfisher policies here. These include Human Rights, Supply Chain Workplace Standards and Sustainable Packaging.
- Products are also checked against a Watch List. The watch list contains several criteria or features, relevant to the product type, that if present disqualify the product from being marked with a green star. The relevant Watch List can be found at the end of this
- factsheet. The Watch List is reviewed and revised annually.
- Life cycle assessments have not been completed for every Green Star product, but by employing policies and the Watch List Criteria in Kingfisher’s Sustainable Home Product Guidelines, many factors in the life cycle of a product are considered.
- The Green Star ‘power tools’ assessment focuses on the in-use phase of the product’s life cycle. Green Star excludes products that may have other environmental aspects that are harmful either as a result of manufacture or end-of-life disposal.
- When replacing a power tool, as with any electronic appliance, you must dispose of the old tool correctly. Tools contain significant amounts of recyclable material, as well as materials that can be hazardous.
Green Star programme entry
- The criteria for power tools is: the product must have a brushless motor because these are more efficient than brushed types:
- Providing Criteria 1 and 2 have been met, a product can marked with the green star.
Reviewing and confirming green star status
- All products nominated and that meet criteria 1 and 2 are assessed internally by our sustainability team and submitted to NGO Bioregional for external validation.
- Once the external review is conducted, the product can then be confirmed and marked with the green star.
- A full review is conducted annually to ensure all products continue to meet the selection criteria.
To find out more about NGO Bioregional, click here
Guiding you to help reduce the environmental impact of home improvement
Watch List Criteria relevant to power tools
This list includes features or aspects of products that make them unsuitable
to be marked with the green star:
- Products supplied with single-use disposable batteries
- Components made from paper or wood that do not meet Kingfisher’s Forest Positive policy
- Recycled plastic products where the source of the plastic is not unknown and/or cannot be confirmed as being safe
- Tools with a L’Indice de Réparabilité (Repairability Index) score of six or lower. This scheme, introduced by the French Government, aims to increase repairability by setting out clear requirements for product classes, scoring every product out of 10. For power tools, lawnmowers on sale in France must now be assessed. In time, more product classes will be added to the scheme – pressure washers will be added in 2023. Any tool with a score of six or lower will not be assessed for EcoPositive in any of Kingfisher’s markets.
- Products where the packaging contains PVC or expanded polystyrene.
- Products or components of products with chrome VI plating.
Products containing palm oil, cotton, rubber or leather with no evidence that the materials have been responsibly sourced
References
Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
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