Screen Printing - October/November 2019 - 20

printers priority when competing for contracts. Still, being an
early adopter allowed Douglass Screen Printing to stand out.
Achieving SGP certification requires considerable effort
over a nine-month (or longer) period and continuing work to
maintain certification, including biennial audits. In addition
to tracking progress on waste management, energy use, and
emissions via an online dashboard, printing facilities must lead
an annual project. DPrint's previous projects included changing out light bulbs for energy-efficient options, finding sources
for recycling oils, and building a compost bin to compost
coffee grounds on-site. This year's project centers on employee
safety, with a goal of keeping employees on the job and making
production more efficient. Hickey is glad she pursued SGP and
says, "Our employees have a business they're proud of and
that's worth a lot."

ADVICE FROM PRINTERS
One question that plagues many businesses wanting to reduce
their environmental impact: Do customers care? There's a
concern that customers are primarily focused on product
quality and price - not whether a printer uses solvent-based
or water-based inks or whether they print on recycled
substrates. But as more printers share stories of their sustainability journey, more awareness will build. Both environmental
awareness and action are accelerating with large businesses
auditing their suppliers, including print shops. They want to
buy from companies that are managing their waste streams,
operating energy-efficient facilities, and treating workers well.
"Nothing is 100-percent green," says Rosacci. "What you can
do as a business is give options to the customer and make sure
you're communicating with them."
Print shops seeking to improve their environmental footprint and attract customers with stringent screening guidelines
should start by evaluating where they are now and setting
achievable goals for the future. Rosacci says, "Once you start
making small changes, you don't go back." He emphasizes the
important thing is to get started and trust the effort will pay off.
Choosing a certification that fits your budget will provide the
framework to evaluate your existing practices and determine
which first steps to take. The certification process is designed
to guide facilities through a process of continuing improvement. Certification doesn't circumvent the effort needed to
change a print shop's policies and procedures, but it provides
a map to follow. Also, the more shops that pursue certification,
the more their suppliers will be pressured to provide affordable chemicals and supplies that support environmentally
friendly practices. Things have been improving - Rosacci can
buy ethically-sourced blank T-shirts at much better pricing
than even two years ago - but there's still a long way to go.
Hickey says print shops should ask themselves, "Do you
want to be a great screen printer? Do you want to be a reputable
screen printer? If so, you're going to have to face up to these
innovations in process management because that's what it takes
to go from good to great. There are no shortcuts."
20

SCREENPRINTING

Employees of DPrint complete mandatory
tasks for SGP certification.

Julia L F Goldstein is the owner of JLFG Communications, producing
white papers, articles, and other technical marketing content for companies manufacturing a wide variety of products. She blogs about
materials and sustainability and is the author of "Material Value: More
Sustainable, Less Wasteful Manufacturing of Everything from Cell
Phones to Cleaning Products."

Screen Printing - October/November 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Screen Printing - October/November 2019