HP’s blueprint for massive packaging waste diversion
By Canadian packaging Staff
Sustainability Hewlett-Packard HP Lavergne Group Planet PartnersBig problems are rarely solved in baby steps and half-measures, and there is nothing little or half-hearted about the worldwide sustainability efforts being implemented by the global information technology powerhouse Hewlett-Packard Company (HP) of Palo Alto, Ca.—with a bit of help from its Canadian friends at the Montreal-based recycling systems and services provider Lavergne Group, whose breakthrough Planet Partners closed-loop recycling program has enabled HP to have kept more than 160 million inkjet cartridges out of landfills since 2008, while manufacturing more than one billion new inkjet cartridges from fully-recycled plastic.
Big problems are rarely solved in baby steps and half-measures, and there is nothing little or half-hearted about the worldwide sustainability efforts being implemented by the global information technology powerhouse Hewlett-Packard Company (HP) of Palo Alto, Ca.—with a bit of help from its Canadian friends at the Montreal-based recycling systems and services provider Lavergne Group, whose breakthrough Planet Partners closed-loop recycling program has enabled HP to have kept more than 160 million inkjet cartridges out of landfills since 2008, while manufacturing more than one billion new inkjet cartridges from fully-recycled plastic.
And while that alone has achieved a 22-percent carbon footprint cut and a 69-percent water use reduction in HP’s manufacturing process—compared to using virgin plastic—that’s just the beginning, with the world’s leading supplier of printers, copiers and imaging systems also pledging it will have used at least 100 million pounds of recycled plastic in its printing products by the end of 2011.
“HP is an environmental leader among global companies, and these achievements are important milestones in our ongoing efforts,” says HP vice-president of sustainability Engelina Jaspers.
“Applying our rich expertise and know-how, we’re creating more efficient, low-carbon technology solutions that help our customers save energy, resources and costs,” says Jasper, listing mpressive packaging reduction acheivements reached by HP during last year:
• Reducing packaging waste last year by an equivalent of more than 300 million six-ounce Styrofoam cups and enough plastic to cover 1,400 football fields;
• Using approximately 10.5 million pounds of recycled plastic in its consumer printers during 2010—roughly equal to the weight of 1,060 African elephants;
• Saving up to 147 tons of corrugated fiberboard per year by shipping many of the company’s large-enterprise product line in ClearView packaging (see picture);
• Starting to utilize fully-reusable and recyclable totes for shipping several HP consumer product lines;
• Developing the world’s first PVC-free printer—model ENVY 100 e-All-in-One—and achieving 35-percent recycled content in some of its printer series, including the Deskjet 3050 model;
• Extending the use of Energy Star-certified devices to every aspect of HP’s product portfolio, including automated two-side printing for all models.
For more information on Hewlett-Packard, visit www.hp.com/canada.
For more information on Lavergne Group, go to www.lavergne.ca.
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