Recycling Solutions: Seeking a Sustainable Solution

As one of the stand-out trends in the industry in recent years, there has been no escaping the subject of sustainability. All print service providers (PSPs) know that they need to offer a more planet-friendly service if they are to retain, and indeed win, customers who themselves have a strong focus on the environment.
Of course, this is easier said than done. Much is said and written about the importance of “going green”, but how can you actually become a more sustainable business? While it may seem rather obvious, one place to start is recycling. Though far from a new concept, recycling has evolved to a point where PSPs and related businesses can now recycle much more of their waste material.

Of course, you can start small by getting staff to recycle drinks cans and certain packaging after taking lunch in the canteen. However, the end goal for many printers will be to apply this across the business and make sure they are recycling as much as they can in terms of print waste.

Here, we speak with specialists in this area about how they can support PSPs with their long-term environmental goals, and find out more about the services available to print businesses.

A Circular Economy

Up first, circular economy specialist Reconomy has opened up on its relationship with wide-format and superwide-format media manufacturer and distributor Soyang Europe, revealing how this is helping PSPs improve their environmental credentials.

Reconomy combines technology and skills to enable businesses to better manage their resources, helping to reduce waste, optimise their supply chains, and contribute in a meaningful way towards the circular economy.

While this mainly involves working directly with print companies, Reconomy has expanded to partner with several manufacturers and distributors, supporting their customers with textile waste management in the process. Among these partners is Soyang Europe, with this relationship allowing printers using materials from Soyang Europe to responsibly dispose of their waste.

The process works with Reconomy providing customers with a baler to prepare their textile waste. Soyang Europe collects the bales when delivering new products to customers, with waste taken to its facility in Altham in Lancashire ready for bulk collection and transportation to a recycling facility for processing.
“It was a perfect fit,” said Reconomy Director Jon Hutton. “Soyang has always been proactive in wanting to offer their customers, and the wider industry, waste management solutions for their products.

Sustainability is a hot topic for several reasons. Brands and consumers are looking down the supply chain for environmental credentials, so it’s therefore a driving factor in how to not only maintain and gain business, but how a printer positions themselves for the long term.”

Part of the Solution

Originally, Reconomy sourced a solution for recycling PVC banner and polyester fabrics at a UK site. Here, waste was blended with other polymers to produce low grade products. While this process ended when more desirable material became available, a recovery route was soon set up and, with the support of Wheeldon Brothers, waste could now be diverted from landfill to renewable energy.

However, recycling has since been re-established and material is now again being used in manufacturing processes, meaning that when coupled with its use for renewable energy, this is helping work towards a circular economy.

The service is also not limited to materials supplied by Soyang Europe, with the distributor willing to take other suppliers’ waste textiles along with its own. However, this is limited to customers using their own transport within a set radius of Soyang Europe’s facility and when making deliveries.

“Soyang Europe wants to be part of the environmental solution and not the problem,” Hutton says, adding: “The take-back scheme provides a platform for printers to demonstrate their sustainability by providing customers with an outlet for their recycling waste.

“Several customers have engaged with Reconomy further and are now collecting their own clients’ end-of-campaign textiles, integrating this with the collection of their materials. All loads are tracked, and Certificates of Recycling can be issued once the material has been processed.”

No Escaping Sustainability

Also weighing in is J&G Environmental, a waste management company that works with more than 2,000 print houses and newspaper groups across the UK. General manager John Haines says the onus is on printers to ensure they can offer a more environmentally friendly service to their customers.

“To put it simply, there is no escaping the subject of sustainability,” Haines says, adding: “This is by no means limited to the print industry, with companies across all markets having to make changes in order to not only comply with changing regulations and requirements, but also to ensure that they keep hold of valuable customers that themselves value the environment and planet in the work that they do.”

Haines adds that failing to take action means PSPs risk losing customers and missing out on profitable new work from other clients.

“We understand that sustainability can be something of a daunting prospect for printers, with many unsure about how to become more environmentally friendly,” Haines says, continuing: “However, this need not be the case; J&G Environmental has tremendous knowledge of the market and is well placed to offer advice, guidance, and above all, solutions to those printers seeking ways to become a ‘greener’ business.”

Haines also addresses the issue of cost of recycling. He says while there will be some level of cost when it comes to putting in place systems such as recycling, there is no doubt the long-term benefits of these will outweigh any associated costs.

“Think about it for a moment; without these systems in place, you risk missing out on all manner of work, with many customers likely to go elsewhere to companies that can show commitment to the environment with the services they offer and how they operate. By working with specialist providers such as J&G Environmental, printers can identify a system that works for them, allowing them to keep hold of valuable customers and bring in new work.”

By working with specialist providers, printers can identify a system that works for them, allowing them to keep hold of valuable customers and bring in new work

Haines explains that different services will incur different costs, so it is up to the printer to decide how far they want – or in some cases need – to go. He adds that the specialist team at J&G Environmental is on hand every step of the way to walk printers through its range of services and costings, and the benefits this will offer to their business.

J&G Environmental works with many customers on recycling and disposing of printed waste, but the company is also able to support clients with other waste products and materials. These include fluorescent lamps, waste electrical items, and other non-print waste such as PET, cardboard, metals, polythene, polypropylene, and chemicals and hazardous waste.

“Using specialist treatment and safe disposal processes, we can maximise the re-use of materials, minimise the amount of waste sent to landfill, and have a positive effect on the printing industry’s recycling rates and environmental performance,” Haines adds.

This out-of-the-box thinking will stand printers in good stead if they are seeking to bolster their environmental credentials through enhanced recycling. Working with specialists in this area can help you identify areas of improvement and cost-effective methods of achieving a more planet-friendly future.