Environment

Leading Italian manufacturer Ritrama SpA has announced that its Chilean production site has started a partnership with a recycling company in Chile.

Digital print company Elephant Print and Display has revealed it is benefitting from an exciting new renewable energy initiative at their premises near Lewes.

Pixartprinting has launched Pix4Love, a promotional video content campaign linked to Valentine's Day.

Mutoh has received a Viscom Best of 2015 Special Award - attributed by the Viscom Germany organisation - for its Indoor Air Comfort Certificate (IAC) for digitally printed self-adhesive film, which Mutoh and Grafityp Self Adhesive Products obtained earlier this year.  The IAC certificate offers full compliance with all EU regulations regarding VOC emissions into indoor air.

The special award was presented to Mutoh Germany at Viscom Düsseldorf 2015.  To receive an award, entries had to prove their marketability while considering commercial, design and ecological aspects at the same time. Furthermore, they need to offer potential users a noticeable added value versus previously existing solutions.

The Viscom Award committee stated: “With this Indoor Air Comfort Certificate, Mutoh acts as pioneer because it is the first company to offer an emission allowance certificate for digitally printed self-adhesive films that complies with the strict EU requirements for indoor climate comfort. Since this measure is driving developments on the market, Mutoh was presented with the Viscom BEST of 2015 Special Award for this entry.”

The Indoor Air Comfort certificate (IAC) obtained by Mutoh & Grafityp is related to  the Grafityp Ecological non-PVC self-adhesive film (GEF-ES) printed with Mutoh’s Universal Mild Solvent (UMS) inks.  This product certificate, issued by Eurofins, an independent test organisation and world market leader for Volatile Organic Chemical (VOC) product emission testing, guarantees full compliance with all regulations on VOC emissions into indoor air that exist in any EU Member state.  Certification involved test chamber testing of printed film, VOC measurement for some 200 VOCs after 3 & 28 days as well as an in-depth third party audit of the production sites.

This first pan-European low emission certificate demonstrates Mutoh’s commitment in offering digital printers and inks that provide environmental protection and sustainability.  Mutoh’s UMS inks have been specifically formulated to offer a unique and innovative blend of high quality durable colour pigments, a new mix of resins and, last but not least, a new combination of milder and non-aggressive solvents.

The IAC certificate will offer Mutoh ValueJet series printer owners as well as print buyers full peace of mind in regards to long-term consumer protection after installation of the final digitally printed products, as well as full compliance with green building programs and ecological regulations for indoor air quality.

For more information on the Indoor Air Comfort (IAC) certificate, visit http://www.mutoh.eu/Company/NewsEvents/PressReleases/tabid/105/post/indoor-air-comfort-IAC/language/en-US/Default.aspx

[Below photo shows Mr. Volker Lienig with the Special Award]

Antalis has become an official partner of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) and will supply all of the paper used for printed documents during the course of this major international event. In keeping with the event’s theme and Antalis’ commitment to eco-responsibility, the paper used for stationary, posters, handouts and all other documentation, will have a 5-star rating under the Green Star System i.e. be recycled and carry the EU Ecolabel.

A milestone in climate change
The 21st session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21/CMP11), otherwise known as “Paris 2015”, will be held in France from November 30th to December 11th. The objective of the conference is ambitious but crucial: the adoption of a binding universal climate agreement to limit the increase in global temperature to below 2 degrees Celsius.

Businesses contribute directly or indirectly to global warming and are therefore essential stakeholders in the design of effective solutions. It is incumbent on each of them to conduct their business activities in a responsible manner and ensure their environmental impact is reduced to a minimum. As a leading paper merchant, Antalis fully takes on board this responsibility and also aims to make sure that the voice of the paper industry is heard as it is often wrongly accused of being one of the key causes of deforestation and therefore of global warming.

“Antalis and the paper industry in general must lead by example and continue the efforts already made to reduce their environmental impact such as through the increased use of cogeneration and renewable energy sources, and further more to promote recycled paper which has a lower impact on the environment”, says Hervé Poncin, Chief Operating Officer of Antalis International. “Environmental responsibility is an ongoing commitment that needs to be part of the DNA of every company if we are to make a lasting contribution to the preservation of the planet and reduce global warming. Antalis is proud to support COP21 and its ambitious objective.”

Wide format digital printer manufacturer MUTOH & wide format media manufacturer GRAFITYP announced that they have obtained an Indoor Air Comfort Certificate (IAC) for the Grafityp Ecological non-PVC self-adhesive film (GEF-ES) printed with Mutoh Universal Mild Solvent (UMS) inks. This product certificate issued by Eurofins, an independent test organisation and world market leader for Volatile Organic Chemical (VOC) product emission testing, guarantees full compliance with all regulations on VOC emissions into indoor air that exist in any EU Member state. Certification involved test chamber testing of printed film with maximum possible ink coverage, VOC measurement for some 200 VOCs after 3 & 28 days as well as an in-depth third party audit of the production sites.

“This product certificate demonstrates Mutoh’s commitment in offering digital printers and inks that provide environmental protection and sustainability”, says Stephan Heintjens, Mutoh Belgium’s Product Development Manager. “Our UMS inks have been specifically formulated to offer a unique and innovative blend of high quality durable colour pigments, a new mix of resins and, last but not least, a new combination of milder and non-aggressive solvents”.

“This IAC certificate will offer ValueJet series printer owners as well as print buyers full peace of mind in regards to long-term consumer protection after installation of the final digitally printed products, as well as full compliance with green building programs and ecological regulations for indoor air quality,” Heintjens concludes.

“At Grafityp we are delighted with this important environmental acknowledgement”, says Harald Jumelet, Grafityp’s Sales & Marketing Manager. “This pan-European IAC product certificate assures that wide format prints made on our Grafityp Ecological Film printed with Mutoh UMS inks will contribute to the comfort and well-being of building inhabitants. It will assist building owners, brand owners, planners, indoor decorators and architects to select low polluting products and to achieve good Indoor Air Quality”, concludes Jumelet.

“Several Member States of the EU require a documentation of product emissions of VOCs. CE marking of construction products and wall coverings including digitally printed self-adhesive non-PVC film is expected to follow soon”, says Reinhard Oppl, Head of Eurofins’ Certification body. “Our Indoor Air Comfort Certification Program aims at providing one global label for Europe. Tests are based on the ISO 16000 series standards and are performed in accordance with the harmonised CEN/TS 16516 horizontal testing method for VOC emissions” continues Oppl.

”The Indoor Air Comfort product certification implies compliance with emission requirements of all applicable specifications issued by authorities in the EU Member States covering Belgian regulation, French regulation class A, German regulation AgBB, upcoming Lithianian regulation and E1 classification (recommended for production of home furniture and wooden floorings). After issuing the certificate, we are also following up with repeated audits to ensure continuous low emission values”, concludes Oppl.

About Mutoh’s UMS inks

The UMS inks offer an outdoor UV resistance of up to three years without lamination. They offer an unrivalled colour gamut and a unique gloss preservation. The CMYK ink set covers 83 % of the Pantone C® colour chart. The inks are fixed and dried at temperatures below 50°C and are suited for both high quality and high speed printing. More info : http://www.mutoh.eu/en-us/products/optionsinks/inks.aspx 

About Grafityp’s GEF-ES ecological film

GEF-ES, the latest development within Grafityp’s COLIBRI range, is an environmentally friendly PVC-free film with a thickness of 135 microns. The film comes with a high quality print coating, which has been developed especially for solvent (eco-mild-hard) inks. With this new eco film Grafityp meets the ever growing demand for alternative environmentally friendly solutions. Combined with the COLIBRI laminates, the film is a unique environmentally friendly solution for all kinds of large format printing applications. More info : http://www.grafityp.com/printmediaUK.html 

About Eurofins

With over 17,000 staff in around 200 laboratories across 36 countries, Eurofins Scientific is the world leader in food and biopharma product testing, and on several other fields. The Danish branch Eurofins Product Testing A/S is the world leader in VOC testing and operates the "Indoor Air Comfort" certification program for products with low VOC emissions into indoor air. More info : www.eurofins.com/iac-certified