SAVE Award 2011 Ideas

Being a college student, I really don't have a budget to get items I need ( like books, hangers, whatever) so I often turn to the service Freecycle--which I guess inspired me with this idea. Since each Department is complied of many offices, I think we should create an inter-office supply network. Similar to the website/program Freecylce, offices within each Department can post wanted ads for supplies they need and offices... more »

There are many good ideas to save money by altering usage of postage, office supplies, paper, etc. I propose two different and specific avenues to save money, at least within FSIS.
First, there should be a revamping of the FSIS Field Supply Center so that quantities for all products are listed on the website. In this way, if a person orders 10 reams of paper, 10 cases of paper reams are not sent or one dozen gloves... more »

We in Chicago are fortunate to be surrounded by many Federal buildings housing many different agencies. We were able to participate in an office supply trade with other agencies in the area. It's amazing what supplies some agencies provide. It was like a shopping spree!! Items our office had no use for or things which we had in abundance, (tablets, pens, staplers, etc.) were brought to the "shopping" area and added... more »

Maintain an agency surplus for office supplies and equipment that offices can use to meet their needs. Likewise, offices can add to that surplus every 6 months, by combing through their own supplies and equipment which is not used.

I'm the purchasing agent and equipment inventory coordinator for my office. We have less than 150 employees who make little effort to request items which would save any money to the Government.... more »

Many offices maintain office supplies and equipment, and have an excess of items that are often new and barely used. In many instances, these items go unused or shelves, and will, at some point, be discarded or donated. Yet, it is likely that someone within the Federal Government has need of them now. Rather than placing an order for items, or going without, what if a database were created for listing and describing... more »

Space always seems to be an issue for files & storage in every office. I know in our department, we have numerous storage closets w/file cabinets FILLED w/ outdated office supplies (3.5 x 5 floppy disks, typewriter ribbons/correction ribbons, used binders, shelf organizers, etc). We try to recycle as much as we can, but can't use the outdated supplies anymore. I suggest that we get with local COSE, SBA companies, non-profit... more »

Each field office and/or HUB office should assign or request a volunteer to oversee the recycling/re-purposing of manilla folders, legal binders, and accordion pocket folders. Many times I have retrieved folders from rubbish cans or "documents to be shredded" bins since they are typically in good shape and require pasting a new label over the old one or by peeling off an old label.

The cost, resources, and energy... more »

There are no slam dunks --- we need to find little ways to save and help them multiply.

$150,000,000.00 can be saved INSTANTLY, with NO overhead by completing three steps.*

1. Use ¼ Less Flourescent bulbs in the Office
2. Initiate a Mandatory FULL computer shutdown (PC’s, Monitors and Speakers) @ COB everyday, and,
3. Remove ALL personal Printers.

These three steps require no oversight, overhead or special planning/equipment.... more »

There are about 4-8 office productivity and e-mail applications that all federal workers use pretty much every day. We all know the brand names, and we all get new versions ported to us IAW our Agency's/Component's software refresh cycle. BUT many/most users never receive any training on how to effectivley use the apps. So, much paper and time gets wasted as users "hunt & peck" for the right print-out format, or the... more »

Have a clearinghouse for office supplies, furniture, computer equipment, uniforms, anything that people can use that they may not need anymore, or have a surplus on, that other people may need. Instead of always buying new stuff, save money by using something already purchased, or reusing. May also reduce waste. Uniform caches for all agencies that use them, so not always buying new ones, especially if in good condition,... more »

When our office orders batteries, they are shipped via fed ex or UPS with one to two small packages in a large box with a lot of filler paper. Why not use one of those standard USPS "one price" shipping boxes and ship a large quantity at once? It would save on shipping costs AND would conserve the amount of shipping materials used. It also would boost USPS profits. If we did that with all of our office supply orders,... more »

Here at Central Office for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (in the Department of Health and Human Services), a table recently was set up to display office supplies. Staff bring unwanted items (both new and used) to this table located in a central location in the building, and other staff look over the items and take those items that they will use.

A Stationary Warehouse is a storeroom dedicated to the collection, storage, and redistribution of unused or lightly used stationary and other office supplies previously purchased for official government use. As envisioned, a Warehouse resides in any federal building (e.g. DOE Stationary Warehouse, FAA Stationary Warehouse) and is located near the office supply store to allow employees to easily locate and search the... more »

There are only 14 different calendars in existence. There is no need to print a new one every year. Recycle the appropriate calendar from a collection of calendars, for example, 1994 is identical to 2011.

This idea has probably seen your desk many times, but we need to push it a little bit harder.

Provide the Federal Government with the proper software and electronic means to be able to stop printing documents, make them were everything is fillable and were we can sign electronically and submit via email or database. This will reduce ink cost, highlighters, and paper. One internal software or database for every employee... more »