Three Xerox Premier Partners Explain How They Have Taken Leadership Roles in Establishing Environmentally Friendly, Sustainable Work Practices

By Bob Wagner
Graphic Impressions, February 2008

One of the big stories at the bellwether Consumer Electronics Show in Chicago this past January was growing interest in “green” electronics that contribute to a sustainable environment. In December, the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine, became the nation’s first “carbon-neutral” campus, balancing the amount of carbon dioxide released into the air with the amount it removes.

The school is among more than 450 universities and colleges to take “net-zero” pledges through the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment Program. Even price-conscious retail giant Wal-Mart has established aggressive, long-term environmental goals of using 100 percent renewable energy, creating zero waste and selling products that sustain the world’s environment. Green initiatives turn up everywhere today — including the printing industry. Both professional networking and educational organizations for U.S. print buyers — Print Buyers Online.com and Print Buyers International — report growing interest in the topic, evidenced in their online poll results and attendance at their annual conferences’ green seminars.

One result: digital printing’s inherently green characteristics are gaining new favor. Digital uses fewer solvents than most offset presses. Further, digital’s distribute-then-print processes reduce energy-intensive transportation, print-on-demand lessens costly warehousing and landfill waste, and personalized printing cuts page volumes by targeting information more precisely — making each page more valuable.

Xerox Corporation, a leader in digital printing, also has run a leadership environmental program since the early 1990s and was recently named to the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, recognizing the company’s economic, environmental and social performance. To learn how today’s leading print providers are addressing environmental issues, we turned to members of the Xerox Graphic Arts Premier Partners, a global affinity group of more than 670 leading Xerox graphic communications customers. Here are three of their stories.

Staying ‘Ahead of the Curve’

“We hear more and more from our customers that they’re expecting us to be a good custodian of the environment,” said Freddie Baird, executive vice president and chief operating officer,
QuantumDigital, Inc., Austin, Texas (www.quantumdigital.com).
“So we’re trying to stay ahead of the curve.” The highly automated provider of multi-channel direct marketing has taken three steps toward establishing environmentally sustainable operations, he said.

First, the company chose a paper supplier that has Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) “chain of custody” certification, meaning that the source of the paper can be traced to operations using sustainable forestry practices. In addition,
QuantumDigital offers a selection of recycled papers. Second, the company established an internal paper and plastics recycling program. More than 80 tons of paper were recycled in 2007, saving more than 1,300 pulp-producing trees, more than a half million gallons of water, and more than 300 cubic yards of landfill space, Baird said.

Finally, the company chooses green equipment providers, such as Xerox with its Xerox iGen3® 110 Digital Production Press. “The iGen3 press is a great choice for environment sustainability,” Baird said. “Most parts can be recycled or remanufactured, and more than 80 percent of the waste it produces can be reused or sent back to the manufacturer.” The company cites its green efforts when selling to new customers. According to Baird, “It has a big impact on the morale of the company and our culture that we take environmental sustainability seriously. In the future, we will look to buy renewable solar and wind energy to power our plant operations.”

A Moral Imperative

EarthColor, Parsippany, New Jersey (www.earthcolor.com), already buys renewable energy. In fact, it has committed to 100 percent renewable energy with the largest purchase yet in the printing industry, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The 2007 purchase of 25 million kilowatt-hours annually from wind farms delivers an estimated environmental benefit equivalent to planting more than 2.2 million trees or removing 2,400 cars from the road each year. Use of renewable energy is part of a comprehensive sustainability program at EarthColor that began with FSC-certification in 2005. “We started our sustainability efforts in response to emerging scientific evidence on the negative effects of industry on the health of the planet and the people,” said EarthColor Chief Executive Officer Robert Kashan. “I believe we have a moral responsibility to do the right thing, to be an excellent corporate citizen.”

Today the program is run by full-time Director of Sustainability David Podmayersky, who serves on a number of national environmental panels and provides guidance on process improvement opportunities at EarthColor. Green efforts are integrated into nearly every practice at the $330-plus million company, and progress is tracked by using such metrics as recycling percentage, re-utilization, carbon reduction and countless other categories. The initiative also extends to clients, whom EarthColor advises on green approaches. “Environmental results have to be as key a consideration as profitability,” Kashan said. “We don’t see them as mutually exclusive. We’ll spend a significant amount on capital expenditures moving forward, and we’ll put in the most efficient equipment to be more productive and use less energy. As for long term goals, he said, “I look at things in the absolute. We don’t just want to reduce harm to the environment in the future, we want to know how to improve immediately.”

Green Boosts Business

Leading commercial printer Sandy Alexander, Clifton, New Jersey (www.sandyinc.com), has a similarly comprehensive environmental sustainability program, which has accounted for more than $5 million in sales, according to Roy Grossman, president and chief executive officer, Sandy Alexander. Among them: Coca-Cola’s annual report, which states it was printed by Sandy Alexander using environmentally sustainable processes. Sandy Alexander initiated its green program in 2002 when it’s Clifton, New Jersey facility was first certified compliant with the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System standard. The certification process increased the company’s environmental consciousness, Grossman said, “And it became an integral part of everything we do. In the last few years it has become one of most important factors that differentiates Sandy Alexander from many of our competitors.” Today, Sandy Alexander is one of half a dozen printing companies in the Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Leaders program, which requires companies to set environmental goals and audit their progress. Last year, the company released its first-ever Environmental Responsibility Report, publicly reviewing its progress in reducing its environmental footprint. Among the company’s accomplishments: becoming the first U.S. printer to use 100 percent wind energy to power its operations. “It’s great to be using 100 percent renewable energy,” Grossman said, “But reducing your carbon footprint and using less energy, that’s the real challenge.” The company’s aggressive goal: reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 85 percent or more by the year 2012. To reach the goal, the company annually selects initiatives within the framework of it’s ISO 14001 Environmental Management System that are projected to deliver return on investment within three to four years, said Chip Stine, senior vice president, Sandy Alexander.

Grossman concludes that it’s an extremely satisfying effort. “It’s one of the few things in business where you’re doing the right thing for the planet, for society and also for you company because, A: your clients like it, and B: by using less energy you reduce your overall cost structure. It’s an absolute win-win.”

Bob Wagner is vice president, Xerox Creative Services Business and Premier Partners Program, robert.wagner@xerox.com. For more information on how Xerox is contributing to a sustainable environment, visit
www.xerox.com./environment.