GREENer Page 2
Aluminium
CCS employees have proudly continued their commitment to the environment by recycling every aluminum can we use. Our on-site soda machine offers free soda, so we go through a lot of soda containers. By placing multiple aluminum can receptacles throughout our facility, we retrieve a per-month average of 4,760 aluminum cans for recycling.
A little known fact: tossing one aluminum can in the garbage wastes as much energy as pouring out half of that can’s volume of gasoline. By our individual acts of recycling we conserve the equivalent of 223 gallons of gasoline a month.
Not only do we recycle soda cans, we also recycle the aluminum plates from our MAN Roland 500 press – a monthly total of approximately 500 aluminum plates.
Plastics
A large amount of plastic waste could also find its way into the waste stream at CCS. Our recycling efforts with International Paper, though, have also allowed us to divert those materials. The plastic we recycle includes the stretch wrap from pallets, the waste from shrink wrapping, the plastic ties around cases of paper and the hard plastic containers of CD jewel cases.
Ink and Toner Cartridges
CCS employs a fleet of high-speed black and white and color printers, all of which use toner cartridges. We have several office copiers, fax machines, and laser printers, and our prepress department uses four large format ink-jet printers for various tasks and services. Because this equipment produces ink or toner cartridge waste, CCS has teamed with Olympic Office Supply, Xerox, and other vendors, establishing a comprehensive recycling program to ensure that these items don’t end up in landfills.
Chemicals and Inks
On a daily basis, CCS Printing produces chemical and ink waste as inevitable consequence of our processes. Fortunately, we have built a relationship with EnviroTech Systems, who not only remove our auto wash, photo fixer, oil, and used inks, they actually recycle/distill and redistribute many of these chemicals. CCS chose EnviroTech Systems because we wanted to ensure that our chemicals were being put to the best possible use -- not just stockpiled indefinitely.
Conservation
At CCS Printing we have converted nearly 70% of our lighting to compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. CFLs use 75% less energy than typical incandescent bulbs and produce less heat. They last 30% longer than the typical bulb and require less frequent replacement.
All Exit signs on our property have been converted to light-emitting diodes (LEDs). LEDs are highly efficient and work perfectly for Exit signs that cannot be switched off.
Our entire company has adopted the motto, “If I’m not using it, it’s not on.” Signs on every light switch in the building remind employees to conserve energy and turn off the lights. All energy consuming equipment is turned off when not in use and the production staff ensures that, unless it is running, all equipment is either powered off or set to power saver mode.
Reuse
All incoming packing materials and undamaged boxes are stored for reuse. The shipping and receiving department also consolidates empty pallets and sends them to our fulfillment facility for use in their warehouse.
Environmental Projects
Adopt-A-Road
Through the King County Adopt-A-Road Program, CCS Printing has adopted a two-mile stretch of Newport Way in Bellevue. Twice a year, a team of 15 to 20 CCS employees spends three hours picking up litter along this roadway. During our most recent cleanup they collected 13 bags of trash and 3 bags of recycling. Adopt-A-Road affords employees an opportunity to give back to the community in a meaningful way and helps protect plants and wildlife in the area.
Washington Trails Association
During the summer of 2008, CCS volunteered with the Washington Trails Association to perform much-needed trail clearing and maintenance within Washington’s state and county parks, local US forests, and national parks. This will continue as a regular event at CCS.
Charity
Each holiday season, CCS chooses a charity to provide support and donations to through a giving tree program offered to our employees. In years past, CCS has donated to battered women’s shelters, held toy drives for needy children and has supported PAWS (Progressive Animal Welfare Society). During the 2008 season, CCS chose two charities, Holiday Stockings for Homeless Children sponsored by the U.S. Coastguard and a food drive for HopeLink.
In March, 2008 several CCS employees will be participating in The Big Climb in support of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.