Sustainability In Print
‘Sustainability’. It’s a word that gets used a lot these days, and the more it gets used, the less meaning it seems to have. So what does ‘sustainability’ really mean and specifically what does ’Sustainability in Print’ mean?
When it comes to Kosdown Printing we think it’s pretty simple, it means we do everything we can, everyday, to make our processes and manufacturing as ‘green’ and ‘eco friendly’ as possible (more over-used words). We strive to lighten our footprint in every way we can and are always on the look out for better and more efficient manufacturing processes because we view being ‘green’ as not just a label but an evolving process that requires constant vigilance, reassessment and improvement.
Ok sure, but still what does all this mean? Here’s a real world example to demonstrate how Kosdown walk the walk, not just talk the talk.
We do a lot of election campaign work, that includes producing thousands of Corflute posters and placards. Once these have been taken down from walls after an election campaign (and you’ve made your democratic mark!), the boards can be returned to our factory collection bin that we’ve set up. We then sort and return the collected boards to our materials substrate manufacturer, who re-pulps and re-manufactures the boards back into fresh Corflute sheets, which then get delivered back to us, for reprinting fresh jobs. So it’s a completely closed 100% recycling loop, the best kind! It’s also worth noting that whilst Kosdown has no political affiliations, we do our homework on clients first to check what their green policies are.
And the printing processes we use to produce our work? We use vegetable and soy based inks to eliminate harmful chemicals, and a waterless and chemical free platemaking process, again eliminating harmful (and expensive) chemicals and saving over 150,000 litres of water a year.
And the power that’s needed to run our machinery? It’s produced from the array of Solar Panels installed on our roof. We installed a 60kw+ system years ago, which produces all of our own electricity and in addition feeds back power into the Grid. This means we have clean energy to run our manufacturing and we save thousands of dollars each year. Doing the right thing is not just good for the environment, it’s good for business.
But what about the paper that we print on, we hear you say? Are we not recklessly destroying hectares of irreplaceable old growth forest? We’re happy to say that ‘no we are not’. The paper we use comes from renewable plantation forests, because protecting our future is something we are passionate about. Kosdown was one of the first printers in Australia to be accredited by the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) the peak international organisation that encourages paper mills to find solutions to problems created by bad forestry practices and reward good forest management. The FSC® Chain of Custody (CoC) means the paper we use has been traced from environmentally sustainable forest logging, to paper mill right through to the finished product.
All of these facets form part of our environmental and sustainability policy which we invite you to read, but it goes further than this. We are also committed to our ethical employment and sourcing policy because as a third generation family owned company we know that people are critical to our business, and that the value of good people makes good business sense.
Along our journey we have been recognised and awarded for many achievements that reflect sustainability as a core pillar of Kosdown Printing. Please don’t hesitate to contact us for more info about our credentials, or click below to read more about why Kosdown is Melbournes leading ’Sustainable’ printer.
