How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.
– Anne Frank
These days when people hear "Global Warming" and "Environmentalism" it can trigger many things in them, some good, and some... not so good. The issue has become very divisive over the years, and unfortunately it may have also led to some missed opportunities in the stamp industry.
Regardless of your personal feelings on this topic, I think we can (hopefully) all agree that less waste, less pollution, and cleaner air and water are all GOOD things. Governments can adopt laws and apply regulations to force people to change, and environmental organizations can press people to adopt their positions and policies.
At Trodat the idea of sustainability has been part of the corporate philosophy for many years and is right at the core of our corporate strategy. Trodat's belief is that individuals and companies themselves who embrace and make the changes necessary to protect the environment, can be seen as leaders in environmental efforts, and at the same time attract new customers to their products and services.
Like Ann Frank said: Trodat didn’t wait for someone to tell them to improve the world, Trodat took the initiative to do so themselves. And while these words sound great and fit well on an advertisement, we at Trodat do not just talk the talk, we walk the walk, and it all starts with the raw materials. We do not use any hazardous materials, such as zinc, cadmium, or lead in our production facilities. As well, our material suppliers are continually screened for environmental and quality certifications. What goes into our products is just as important as how we produce them. Almost 80% of our post-industrial waste is reused and 100% of our mechanically unstressed parts are recycled.
The one constant in all production is the need for energy and the environmental costs of that energy production can outweigh the savings created by recycling efforts. Trodat is in a unique situation in that we are situated in a place that is ideal for generating power by water. By integrating renewal energy into our production plants, we have been able to prevent greenhouse gasses and other poisonous substances from being released into the atmosphere. Almost 62% of our energy requirements come from these renewable sources. Additionally, heat is recovered from our production processes and is used to heat the buildings, while fresh air is used to cool our injection molding machines instead of the normal liquid coolant.
What has made things like this truly possible? One simple word: Planning. By looking at a project in total from the beginning and trying to find ways to reduce our impact on the environment we can come up with innovations that make our products better and cleaner. To use a baseball analogy, most of the time we get a base hit on our innovations. But every now and then we get a home run. The Printy 4.0 is that home run.
The Printy 4.0 is the world’s first climate neutral stamp. How was it possible to make this happen? Again, planning. Using modern engineering concepts, we were able to reduce the size of the Printy 4.0 by 30% over its predecessor while retaining the same die plate size. The reduced mount size means less material needed and less CO2 generated during shipping.
Also, the production lines that makes the Printy are run with 100% green electricity. Even with all these advancements in production there are still emissions that are unavoidable. To compensate for these emissions, Trodat invests in Gold Standard climate projects recommended by the World Wildlife Federation. In baseball it’s rare to have 2 home runs in a row. When designing a product, it’s even more rare. Yet we hit that second home run with the Professional 4.0. A true carbon neutral dater and heavy-duty text stamp.
The more we learn about the environment and how we can improve, the better we as a company can be. As our processes continue to improve, so too will our products, all to make the world a cleaner place. By partnering with us you will have products you can give your customers that are cleaner, stronger, and better than any other stamp on the market. For more detailed information on Trodat’s commitment to the environment, you can download our 2017 Sustainability Report below.
In Part 3 we will look at ways in which you can sell the green concept to your customers, and how to overcome some of the problems that accompany doing so.
Did you miss The Advantages of Selling Green Part 1? No worries! You can check it out right here: https://www.trodatom.com/post/the-advantages-of-selling-green-part-1-terminology
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