Environmental stewardship

Everything matters.

Our commitment to sustainability is at the heart of our business.

Spotpress has developed a comprehensive and effective environmental management system that has been implemented throughout our organisation. We are committed to continuous improvement of our environmental policies in cooperation with local businesses, organisations, and government regulatory bodies. We meet or exceed environmental legislation, regulations, and standards.

We take our responsibility to the environment seriously. That’s why we’re determined to make our carbon footprint as small as it can be, and why we’ve implemented such a robust environmental policy.

We work to identify potential environmental risks and implement appropriate means to control such risks.
We make efforts to educate our employees, customers, and suppliers about environmental issues relevant to the industry.

Our focus is to reduce our carbon footprint, reuse energy and resources, minimise waste during the manufacturing process and recycle 100% of materials and equipment.

Specifically, our ongoing efforts towards ecological preservation address some of the areas described below.

Certified-Paper

FSC, PEFC or SFI certified paper

Preserving and protecting forest lands for future generations

Although trees are a renewable resource, a stewardship approach is necessary to guarantee that the paper we purchase has come from mills that engage in responsible forestry.
All printing paper we source to print our clients jobs are from mills and distributors that have received and maintained accreditation with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) or the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) Certification certifying that the paper mills and distributors manage their forests under the strictest principles of conservation.

We strongly believe in the importance of preserving the environment and have therefore committed to developing practices that conform to the Chain of Custody certification.

FSC certified paper used by Spotpress is properly identified, tracked and handled during production. This process allows us to provide high quality products while presenting customers with the option of supporting sound environmental practices.

To learn more about the FSC program, visit fsc.org.

VOC REDUCTION

Investing for air quality

At Spotpress, our heat-printing presses have integrated RTO “afterburners” that incinerate over 99.7% of the VOCs produced. We ensure that our volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions comply with all the parameters established by the regulatory bodies. We have accomplished this by transitioning to lower non-VOC pre-press and pressroom products. For example, all inks purchased have extremely low VOCs. Also, we enlist the services of industry experts in reporting and managing our emissions. As new products emerge, Spotpress is among the first to test and adopt innovative solutions.

Recycling

RECYCLING

Can we recycle all the materials we use?

 

We believe we can. We have been a leader in the recycling of the materials we use in our manufacturing process for over 35 years. We follow extremely strict recycling/reuse guidelines. Recycling is aggressively promoted and enforced throughout our plant — from manufacturing through administration.

Printing plates

We recycle 100% of our aluminium lithographic printing plates – approximately 2.5 million kilograms per year.

Paper

We recycle virtually 100% of the paper waste we generate equating to more than 2.5 million kilograms of paper and paper products each year.

Chemicals

We send inks, coatings, solvents and adhesives to be fuel blended/recycled and used for energy by a licensed third-party. No hazardous wastes are ever sent to the landfill.

Paper roll cores

We recycle 100% of unused material from every paper roll.

Ink cartridges

All ink cartridges used on our office printers are sent to a third-party recycler.

Pallets

When pallets are ordered, about 80% of what we receive is reused or reconditioned.

Press rollers

We return worn printing press rollers to the manufacturer for recycling, refurbishing and reuse.

Fountain solution

We have an advanced filtration system that filters for reuse 99.9% of the fountain solution used during printing.

Office supplies

Employees support our sustainability mission through grassroots efforts to recycle aluminium cans, plastic bottles, office paper, and home computer equipment.

RECYCLED PAPER

A sustainable choice

The majority of the paper we source both from local and from international mills include a high percentage of recycled fibre. For example, our newsprint sourced from Australian mills utilises 55% recycled fibre. We also offer our customers 100% recycled paper options from our network of offshore paper mills.

Waste-Minimisation

WASTE MINIMISATION

We challenge ourselves in every part of our business.

Our efforts revolve around a sustainability plan that focuses on conservation of resources and materials as well as taking actions through our purchasing policies and investments that reduce our ecological impact.

Print waste

Our printing press have colour register control, ink-duct pre-setting and closed-loop colour control systems to reduce makeready and running waste.

Inks

We purchase ink in large bulk containers, eliminating the waste of traditional smaller metal and plastic ink cans and the cardboard boxes used to ship them.

Gas

The afterburners on our heatset printing presses that destroy the VOC use the solvents in the printing process to fuel the burner, thus reducing the amount of natural gas consumed.

Prepress waste

A variety of online and digital tools allow us to provide paperless workflow alternatives for our customers.

Blanket wash

Our presses run use a 20% VOC blanket wash.

Water

Our coldest press are equipped with spray dampening fountain systems that dramatically reduce water consumption

Alcohol

We have eliminated isopropyl alcohol in the Pressroom.

Fountain solution

Our coldest press are equipped with spray dampening fountain systems that dramatically reduce fountain solution usage.

Bindery waste

Our bindery machines have automatic makeready systems as well as quality control systems to to reduce makeready and running waste.

Filtration

We have an advanced filtration system that filters for reuse 99.9% of the fountain solution used during printing.

Plates

Implemented a 100% silverless computer-to-plate workflow to decrease the use of chemicals and water and eliminate silver as a waste.

Ink optimisation

We utilise sophisticated software such as GCR (Grey Component Replacement) in our prepress workflow that produces printing plates that consume an average of 15% less ink on every job printed.

Fuel

All company vans have new technology diesel engines and are fuel efficient.

MIS

Our MIS software system is connected to all aspects of our manufacturing processes giving us feedback and insight into areas we may improve our efficiencies.

POWER CONSUMPTION

We make effort on finding ways to reduce our power consumption.

We use Power Factor Correction equipment to filter our electricity feed. We use soft-start software on our motors wherever permitting. All lighting in our facility is either energy efficient LED or fluorescent lighting and is automatically controlled by energy minimising software. Our air compressors are controlled by energy minimisation software that reduces electricity consumption. We are work with energy consultants to reduce our energy consumption by a further 10% over the next 3 years.

Remote-Proofing

REMOTE PROOFING

Minimising our environmental impact

Spotpress was one of the first companies in Australia to adopt remote soft proofing. Hard-copy proofs require chemistry, substrates, and transportation. Remote proofing offers a digital approval process that can be accomplished in minutes rather than hours or days, providing invaluable saving both for your company and for the environment.

0+

tons of paper we recycle annually

Committed to a Sustainable Future

Spotpress will continually work to retrofit systems and procedures to be more sustainable. We are currently implemented numerous mechanical and operational measures that streamline production while reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This includes installing high-efficiency lighting, employing lean manufacturing principles, re-engineering equipment, and making various logistics and freight improvements.

We will continue to monitor technological developments on alternative energy sources and manufacturing efficiencies. We are ready to make take decisive action where appropriate to ensure that the environment is protected for our future generations.

More information is available from our Sustainability Policy.

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