Self-adhesive plastics and siliconised backing papers have been added to the list of materials accepted on the Fespa UK Waste Management Accreditation Scheme.
Since its introduction 18 months ago, the scheme has developed to include graphics materials such as ACM, rigid boards, PVC banner and polyester fabrics, and work has been underway to handle the self-adhesive face plastics and siliconised backing papers used in vehicle and architectural wrapping. Fespa UK has confirmed it can now offer a solution for these materials.
The association will be working with key suppliers to launch the latest part of the Waste Management Accreditation Scheme. 3M, William Smith, Spandex and Premier Paper, All Print Supplies and Soyang Europe are now part of the programme. They will champion the accreditation by offering the recycling solution to their clients and helping them to attain their own accreditation logo and certification, which assesses the current methodologies and costs of all the waste outputs from a site, including general waste, graphics media, dry mixed recycling and hazardous wastes etc, and provides improvement opportunities through our network of waste/recycling contractors.
Fespa UK Suzi Ward MD said: "We are thrilled to witness the positive impact our Waste Management Accreditation Scheme is having on businesses across the graphics industry. We remain committed to supporting businesses on their sustainability journey and as an association we will continue to reinvest our profits into proactive initiatives that help to build a better future for our members and the industry.
“It is such a great feeling to see suppliers working together for the benefit of the industry and their clients. It could have been so easy for the suppliers to just want their own materials collecting from individual sites, but everyone involved agreed that it was important not to single out any materials and make it harder than it has to be for the waste producers who want to be more sustainable, but still have a business to run. By collecting any manufactures materials, we reduce the need for extra time spent segregating materials before collection.”
Jon Hutton, Fespa UK sustainability consultant, added: ''Increasing recycling rates is a key strategy to developing a circular economy and we are increasingly delivering this throughout all sectors of graphic printing, from events to POS , signage, large-format and vehicle wrapping. Our Sustainable Waste Academy is delivering education and collaboration opportunities too across the supply chain, enabling suppliers, printers, signage and graphics businesses to better understand how to manage their waste through best practices, whilst discussing their own ongoing challenges. The accreditation scheme ensures accountability to businesses for waste produced, collected, and treated, and is assisting to improve their environmental position by accounting for the end-of-campaign waste taken back from customers. It's great to see the accreditation becoming a standard that businesses want to work to achieve.''