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This is a massive topic and one that extends far beyond the realms of a humble blog. But it is something we should be thinking about, especially as digital printing system developers are pushing on demand textile production pretty hard these days.
Flint Group has set up a Sustainability Task Force made up of thirteen staff at various locations around the globe. They’re involved in all levels of the Flint Group’s packaging business and are charged with a very special responsibility to support Flint’s future. Flint Group Packaging Inks, one of the company’s numerous divisions amongst which is Xeikon, is a massive provider of packaging printing inks and is actively investigating how to support a circular economy for its business. The commitment to sustainability and supporting reduced environmental impacts is much welcomed.
Improving the carbon footprint of a company is always a work in progress, no matter the size of the business. It’s the same for people. And its the same for supply chains, but that perhaps is the hardest work-in-progress of all because it involves so many vested interests and habits, patterns of work that are hard to reshape.
With apologies to Jane Austen, it’s a fact universally acknowledged that a single individual in possession of a well padded credit card must be in want of stuff. Especially now in the crippling times of Covid-19 that stuff is often printed books and magazines, and this is a very good thing. As well as entertaining us, printed media are environmentally sustainable because they can be recycled into new raw materials. Books, magazines and other forms of print can also be produced on demand, avoiding waste in the first place.
We recently completed a week’s worth of global online meetings, discussing ISO standards for the graphics industry. In many virtual sessions spanning multiple time zones, we looked at everything from the comparative performance of spectrophotometers to managing viewing conditions for soft proofing in modern pressroom environments. In the working group addressing the environmental impact of print, we completed preparations of the draft of ISO 22067-1. This is an important document for ensuring that ecolabels use accurate data when evaluating printing companies and printed matter. The next stage is a vote on 22067-1 and the chance for people to comment on the draft, a process that should be completed by the end of the summer.
