Environment

"Greenwashing"—over-promoting your "green" credentials—is one of today’s headline-grabbers.  What are the facts?  What’s right?  What’s wrong?  Who decides?  Corporate Responsibility (CR) Magazine, a leading US publication, recently ran a webinar where two experts separated "green" from "greenwashing" in the graphic communications value chain.  What does "sustainability" mean at the intersection of paper, printing and packaging?  In the communications war between pixels and paper, which is really "green?"  What are the metrics that matter?  And how can you avoid "greenwashing" in your own print-versus-pixels business decisions?

CR Magazine Publisher and author of The Post-Carbon Economy Jay Whitehead chaired the no-holds-barred live discussion with two of the world’s top authorities on the pixels-versus-paper sustainability debate:

Martyn Eustace, Director of the Two Sides sustainability initiative took part in the debate, having recently been tackling the issue of “Greenwashing” with leading blue-chip companies including British Telecom (BT), British Gas and Standard Life.  Not only does Martyn have some 30 years industry experience as a former CEO with leading national paper merchant groups Howard Smith Paper and Premier Paper, but he is also a member of PricewaterhouseCoopers’ turnaround panel, managing director of Newvizion, and worldwide expert in sustainability and effectiveness of the graphic communications value chain.

Martyn presented case study evidence to show how issues with companies such as BT and British Gas had been tackled and how, following lengthy discussions between Two Sides and BT, BT had changed their messaging and stopped using environmentally incorrect messages on their material such as customer statements and their website.

Also taking part in the debate on behalf of the industry was Lewis Fix. Lewis is VP Brand Management & Sustainable Product Development at Domtar Paper.  Lewis is broadly published on the topic of sustainable paper and forest products and manages company relations with the many NGOs in the environmental and forest management communities. Lewis is also a Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) pioneer and launched “Truth in Paper”. He has been with Domtar for eight years and seen 14 of Domtar’s 15 mills become FSC certified.

During his presentation, Lewis highlighted what he referred to as the “Six Sins of Greenwashing”. These included elements such as vagueness, irrelevance, fibbing and no proof, all of which have added to the use of Greenwashing by leading international companies.

The one-hour debate highlighted that there is still a lot of work to do if “Greenwashing” is to be removed, but more importantly that companies that are putting out these messages need to be tackled and engaged, as endorsed by Martyn during his contribution.

CR Magazine’s webinar series is widely recognised for bringing today’s hottest sustainability and responsibility topics right to your desktop. There were a large number of participants from corporate and public sector organisations in North America and beyond.

 

A leading event production company is transforming the face of hoardings this autumn thanks to the launch of an innovative and eco-friendly product.

GTMS’ new Visionply hoarding is created especially for retail, advertising, leisure, construction, theme parks and signage industries, and offers a wealth of benefits.

Visionply is 100% recyclable, fully weatherproof and can be used in both permanent and temporary installations. And, as a key time and cost-saving advantage, GTMS’ revolutionary new product cuts out two of the processes required with other hoarding products.

Dominik Short, GTMS’ Director said, “Visionply is an exciting addition to our product and services portfolio and we are delighted that this cutting edge hoarding will be of benefit to so many industries.”

The new printable plywood panels are available in various thicknesses and sizes. The Hampshire firm has just completed an installation of 200m2 of Visionply at the first ever Goodwood Vintage Festival that took place in August.

“Visionply is extremely versatile whilst offering real choice and massive cost savings for our clients. It’s not only practical but can be used as an eye-catching feature thanks to the fantastic print quality,” added Dominik.

 

 

Two Sides, the initiative to promote the responsible production and use of print and paper, and encourage its use as an attractive, practical and sustainable communications medium, continues to add influential global leaders to its list of members. Domtar Corporation, the largest integrated manufacturer and marketer of uncoated freesheet paper in North America and the second largest in the world based on production capacity, has joined the campaign, helping to take the Two Sides’ message beyond Europe.

“Domtar is proud to be part of the Two Sides campaign. Domtar is at the forefront of the responsible use of paper, and we collaborate with several environmental organizations to encourage environmentally sound, sustainable forestry practices, high levels of recycling and the use of renewable energy at our manufacturing facilities. We’ve joined the Two Sides campaign because it’s another effective way to help achieve two of our primary goals: highlight that paper is environmentally sound and also encourage people to print responsibly,” says Lewis Fix, VP Brand Management & Sustainable Product Development.

Martyn Eustace, Two Sides Director, comments: “Domtar has invested heavily in reducing its environmental impact so we are delighted that the company is giving its support to our campaign. They too seek to explode the myths that lead people to think that using paper is damaging to the environment and I am sure we will be useful allies in the effort to re-educate end-users, helping them to recognise that paper is actually the sustainable way to communicate. ”

 

Seiko Epson Corporation today released its Sustainability Report 2010, detailing the business, environmental and CSR initiatives undertaken by the Epson Group in fiscal 2009 (April 2009 – March 2010) as it works toward becoming a truly sustainable enterprise.

This year’s Sustainability Report contains two feature sections detailing how Epson aims to achieve its SE15 Long-Range Corporate Vision, announced in March 2009. The first feature, “Create, Produce and Deliver”, looks at Epson’s “customer value creation process” from the perspectives of customer satisfaction, quality assurance, and sales & marketing. The second feature reports on the SE15 Mid-Term Environmental Policy, which spells out the milestone environmental goals for 2015 as the Company works toward realization of its Environmental Vision 2050, announced in Brussels in 2008.

For the second year, the Sustainability Report will be released in digital form only on the corporate website. The report may be viewed at and downloaded from the following link http://global.epson.com/community/sr/

Océ withstood the fierce challenge of international competition and recently landed a 'Green IT' award, reflecting the company's efforts to help customers drive their business by adopting world-leading sustainability measures.

Described as a company "deserving recognition", Océ's international expertise in making a significant contribution to improving the IT industry's environmental performance has been singled out in the UK government-backed Green IT Awards 2010. Océ, an international leader in digital document management and delivery, scooped the "Editor's Choice" accolade at a black-tie event before 200 guests and VIPs at the Prince Albert Suite, London Zoo. Voters among the publication's 70,000 readership had also nominated Océ for the Green IT Magazine Product of the Year (the Océ PlotWave printing system) and the Recycling Scheme of the Year (Caring by Nature).

A company that builds in sustainability and delivers solutions for customers

Brian Wall, Editor of Green IT magazine, commended Océ for its sustainability ethos, which he pointed out had been a corporate cornerstone long before the environment became fashionable. At the awards ceremony, he said: "Océ is a company that builds in sustainability, and its staff apply that to how they deliver solutions to their customers. Océ deserves recognition and, in this case, the accolade of 'Editor's Choice'."

Computer and software companies, including giants like Microsoft and Dell, as well as other digital print manufacturers, were among those who also made it through to the finals. But Océ was the only winner in the "Editor's Choice" category. Green IT awards acknowledge the "outstanding environmental products, suppliers and projects of 2009", as well as highlight companies and teams that have made a "significant contribution to improving the IT industry's environmental performance".

Océ's Caring by Nature Program involves a series of initiatives that underlines its commitment to sustainability. Océ is focused on creating value for all stakeholders by realizing profitable, sustainable growth. Its strategy is aimed at optimizing business processes, strengthening its product portfolio and boosting distribution power. Océ's green ethos involves providing innovative print and document management products and services for professional environments, while acting as a responsible corporate citizen.

Sustainability initiatives developed across the world

 

Examples of Océ's own sustainability work include:

• Launching Océ Green Services to support eco-friendly management services

• Ten companies achieving ISO 140001 accreditation

• Reducing the CO2 footprint of its products. Cutting emissions of ozone, dust, toner and noise are integral to Océ product development

• Scaling down electricity consumption at Océ UK headquarters by 23 percent in a year

• Reducing paper consumption by 650 tons at an R&D department in Germany

• Setting up "green awards". For instance, Océ North America Wide Format Printing Systems division hosted the "Green Reprographer of the Year" Award

• Organizing the Océ Sustainability Week, a campaign providing employees with information about how they can make a positive impact on the environment

• Being featured by the Carbon Disclosure Project as part of its approach to climate change disclosure

 

"It's a recognized fact that a strong performance in sustainability contributes to operational efficiency as well as generating stronger product propositions and a more powerful market image. It is no coincidence that Océ embraced sustainability as part of its core proposition decades ago. Indeed, it is in the DNA of our company that has a long and proud history stretching back more than 130 years. Integrating sustainability into our offering has become one of our key priorities. We recognize our corporate duty to actively help manage our customers' environment," said Bron Curley, managing director of Océ UK Ltd.

The key sponsor of the Green IT Awards was the Department of Energy and Climate Change, responsible for UK energy policy and for tackling global climate change on behalf of the UK.

Strengthening its position as a sustainability leader in the inks, pigments and coatings industry for its customers, five of Sun Chemical’s commercial conventional sheetfed inks have earned the highest average index ratings in the National Association of Printing Ink Manufacturers’ (NAPIM) bio-renewable content (BRC) certification program to date.

The five inks, SunLit Diamond, SunPak Diamond, SunLit Intense, SunLit Exact and SunLit Express, each received a BRC index of 80, an objective rating that means Sun Chemical’s inks use an average of 80 percent renewable resources.

The BRC labeling program is an initiative by NAPIM used to evaluate and minimize the environmental impact of printing inks. The BRC index number is a quantifiable value that is calculated to represent the range of bio-renewable content. The program includes a NAPIM registered label that can be applied to the ink container and a comparable design for use by a printer that uses the inks.

“This achievement is testimony to Sun Chemical’s commitment to sustainability and validates our efforts to develop products that have minimal impact on the environment,” said Michelle Hearn, director of marketing, North American Inks, Sun Chemical. “One of our goals has been to increase the use of renewable materials in our commercial sheetfed offerings to the highest possible levels, and we will work hard to continue improving on what we have already accomplished.”