Arjowiggins Graphic Celebrates Five Years of Landmark Environmental Savings
To celebrate its fifth anniversary Arjowiggins Graphic has become the first ever paper manufacturer to calculate the environmental savings of using recycled papers in the UK over the past five years.
The first statistics of their kind calculate how much landfill, carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases, water, energy and wood have been saved by Arjowiggins Graphic UK customers using recycled paper, as opposed to paper produced from virgin fibres. The results underline the significant environmental benefits of using recycled papers:
- 220,228,066 kg of landfill – the same weight as 26,217,627 household rubbish bins
- 27,643,943 kg of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases – enough CO2 to fill 2,764,394,300 party balloons
- 3,834,909,800 litres of water – the equivalent of 1,534 Olympic swimming pools
- 410,447,710 KWh of energy – enough energy saved to power 124,378 households for a year
- 325,530,055 kg of wood – the same weight as 474,534 Mini Coopers
With enough landfill saved to fill over 26 million rubbish bins and enough energy to power the average home for over 124,000 years, these results are a proud achievement for the leading European recycled paper manufacturer.
These statistics are based on the recycled paper manufactured by the company and distributed in the UK over five years, using Arjowiggins Graphic’s unique Eco Calculator.
The Eco Calculator works out how much an individual, company, or printer has saved for any given print job (brochure, report, direct mail etc.) by using Arjowiggins Graphic recycled paper as opposed to paper produced from virgin fibres. This can then be taken a step further by showing the environmental savings on a specific print job, not only demonstrating a company’s environmental commitment but also enabling everyone to truly understand the benefits of using recycled paper.
The Eco Calculator is just one of the company’s achievements over the past five years, as Arjowiggins Graphic has firmly established itself as a leading provider of environmental paper solutions and now offers the largest range of recycled papers on the European market. Key achievements include:
- Introducing the first 100% recycled range of Inkjet papers: Cocoon Jet, Cocoon Jet Silk, Cocoon Jet Pro and Cocoon Jet Premium
- Introducing the first 100% recycled, FSC® certified recycledd label brand for the packaging market: Maine 1 Face Natural
- Being selected as one of the top 25 pulp and paper manufacturers to show leadership in transparency by the WWF Environmental Paper Company Index 2013
- Increasing the share of fibres used from FSC® certified forests to 84%
- Diverting waste from landfill in the UK by sourcing (in the region of) 20% of the waste paper used to manufacture recycled paper
- Joining the WWF climate savers programme and setting ambitious targets to reduce CO2 emissions
- Succesfully implemented ISO 5001 certified energy management system for all manufacturing sites (the international standard recognising businesses that are demonstrating best in practice in energy management whilst following a programme for continuous improvement)
Arjowiggins Graphic’s innovative approach to the paper industry doesn’t end in their development of new papers, as a further celebration of the five-year anniversary they have also launched a new LinkedIn group and company page. The group and page will help communicate news and innovations throughout the year and will also enable Arjowiggins Graphic to share regular updates of the company’s environmental savings.
Reflecting on the anniversary Gilles Lhermitte, Head of Sustainable Development at Arjowiggins Graphic, comments:
“Every one of our initiatives to reduce our impact on the environment counts. For each of these initiatives we set up working parties or steering committees so that best practices and expertise can be shared.”
One initiative that has proved integral to reducing Arjowiggins Graphic’s impact on the environment is the WWF’s Environmental Paper Company Index, as Chief Executive of Arjowiggins Graphic, Agnes Roges, comments:
“We are incredibly proud to part of the WWF’s Environmental Paper Company Index (EPCI) as it is an extremely relevant and important part of measuring Arjowiggins Graphic’s environmental credentials. The EPCI has helped us to set ambitious goals and targets that have constantly pushed Arjowiggins Graphic to operate in a sustainable and transparent way.”