Sustainability investment at Papergraphics

Print Solutions Green Solutions

Papergraphics has announced a £1 million programme of sustainability initiatives.

Michelle Dellow, product manager and sustainability lead, explained: ‘Our sustainability efforts are motivated by the need to mitigate against rising operational costs, the desire to minimise environmental impact, and the critical need to meet customer expectations for environmental responsibility. We are prioritising tangible action to ensure that what we are claiming is visible and measurable.’

She continued, ‘We also acknowledge the challenges of some products, such as self-adhesive vinyls, which are not yet fully recyclable or environmentally friendly. However, Papergraphics is committed to working towards improving these situations while making a substantial impact in other operational areas.’

A key initiative involves installing solar panels across the company’s headquarters’ roof in Crawley. Over 648 panels were fitted in a month long project, which is set to reduce energy costs significantly.

The system can generate up to 266,700 kWh annually, which is enough to power more than 100 average British homes. This clean energy will be used mainly for Papergraphics’ day to day office requirements and the company’s electric vehicle fleet of nine new electric and five plug-in hybrid vehicles. Any surplus energy will be supplied to the National Grid.

Michelle added, ‘Six on-site electric vehicle chargers have been installed for staff and guests, and home charging options are available for employees with company vehicles. This shift will reduce the company’s carbon footprint and help to enhance air quality in our local area.’

Papergraphics processes hundreds of media rolls daily, either converting them to specific roll sizes or delivering them to customers across the UK and Europe. Packaging materials alone contribute to large amounts of plastic and other difficult to recycle waste that previously ended up in landfill. 

To address this, the company has invested in three balers, two for plastic and one for cardboard. The plastic balers are very easy to use and have already drastically reduced waste by compacting many forms of packaging plastic, including bubble wrap previously destined for landfill. 

‘This reduction in waste collections cuts emissions and allows Papergraphics to reinvest savings into further sustainability projects. In just six months, we have recycled nearly four tonnes of plastic and over 15 tonnes of cardboard, diverting around 1900 bin bags of waste from landfill,’ said Michelle.

Michelle concluded, ‘This is a long term project the whole company is behind. We are so proud to have made some significant investments in important areas of the business that will help us be a better and more environmentally conscious organisation. There is a lot more still to do, but we are working hard to make sure every project delivers measurable improvements to our operational wellbeing.’