Sustainability

Marchesini Group is counting down toward the opening ceremony of its new logistics building, which will be held during a five-day open house October 18-22, 2010. The new structure, which will house the group’s logistic activities, is the result of a project focusing on eco-compatibility and environmental sustainability. The new building will be located in Pianoro, Bologna, next to the Marchesini Group Headquarters.

Baxter International Inc. has been recognized by several organizations that rank corporations on progress in sustainability. 

A new business venture plans to buy, aggregate, and process post-consumer polylactic acid (PLA) for potential reformulation. According to executive director Mike Centers, Biocor LLC (Concord, CA) will collaborate on PLA recycling pilot projects and work with federal, state, and municipal entities, non-governmental organizations, consumer groups, and recycling organizations.

Colbert Packaging Corp. (Lake Forest, IL) has received Sustainable Forestry Initiative and Forest Stewardship Council Chain of Custody Certifications following a rigorous audit of three facilities. These two new certifications encompass Colbert’s operations in Lake Forest, IL, and Elkhart, IN, certifying three facilities for meeting strict tracking requirements to ensure that certified paperboard used in these facilities comes from a well-managed forest. The certifications are a key component of Colbert’s sustainability goals.

Pharma machinery manufacturer Optima Group is converting its electricity to draw power from renewable resources at both of its sites in Schwaebisch Hall. In the beginning of December, Hans Bühler, managing director, signed a contract with the municipal utility company of Schwaebisch Hall that guarantees direct power supply from a hydropower plant. The Schwaebisch Hall sites consume approximately 2.7 million kilowatt hours, which can be compared to the consumption of 600 four-person households.

Like forward-thinking medical device manufacturers these days, Edwards Lifesciences has launched an internal initiative to lessen its impact on the environment. As a result, Project Green, the company’s effort, has its packaging leader exploring biopolymers. Don Krebs, CPP, senior packaging engineer, global packaging operations, will be presenting “Challenges of Implementing Biopolymer Packaging Material in the Medical Device Industry” at the upcoming Medical Design & Manufacturing West 2010 in Anaheim, CA, held February 8-11.

To help companies measure progress in packaging sustainability as defined by the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC; Charlottesville, VA), the SPC has publicly released its Sustainable Packaging Indicators and Metrics Framework Version 1.0. The Metrics Framework provides a wide-ranging palette of indicators and metrics that are organized into eight categories related to material use, energy use, water use, material health, clean production and transport, cost and performance, community impact and worker impact.

Baxter International Inc. is deepening its commitment to address global sustainability while supporting its corporate responsibility to the communities in which it operates.

Shorewood Packaging (New York) has launched TerraGreen which it says is the first water-based coating made from renewable resources. Developed by Shorewood strategic supplier ACTEGA Terra GmbH of Germany, TerraGreen is free of solvents and petrochemicals, allowing paper board packaging that uses the coating to be processed in a municipal recycling program.