Welcome!

ImageWelcome to Verdigris. This site provides information about environmental initiatives for the international printing community. It has a range of articles and reference links for printers, publishers, technology providers and anyone else who’s interested.

Articles cover all sorts of topics from explaining the basics of carbon footprinting for printers, to describing how individual printing companies are doing their bit to minimise their impact on the envrionment. This is an educational site that includes reference material and links to industry associations and environmental organisations around the world.

Mercury lamps on the out

Mon, 27/11/2023 - 09:12

Laurel-2018.jpgThe Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner

It’s been a long time coming but the end of mercury arc lamps is definitely in sight. Mercury is a seriously nasty neurotoxin that is steadily being regulated out of products, including in the fluorescent lamps used in the printing industry for ink curing. Bodies from the US Environmental Protection Agency to the United Nations and the European Union are all banning the use of mercury in products mostly by the end of 2025.

Standards and certifications are important

Mon, 13/11/2023 - 12:26

medium_laurel2015.jpgThe Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner

The printing industry continues to evolve away from the small trade shops of the past, as consolidation changes the nature of the business. But concerns about quality control and production excellence are still important, so ensuring consistency across multiple production sites is fundamental to profit in modern print production. This is even more important where output is fully automated and where sites have diverse workflows, producing print across different substrates.

Points of sustainability progress

Mon, 30/10/2023 - 08:25

medium_2015_Laurel B.jpgThe Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner

Since this blog started we have published over 500 articles talking about sustainability in the graphic arts. The goal is still to raise awareness of the industry’s environmental impact and to encourage all players in print media supply chains to take sustainability seriously. Only with the engagement of all players at an individual as well as at a corporate level will a difference be made. It seemed like a thankless and uphill task at the time, and it has been. But the signs are looking good.

Innovating for sustainability

Mon, 16/10/2023 - 08:04

Laurel-2018.jpgThe Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner

Disposing of waste water effectively can be difficult for flexo printers. This print process produces much of the packaging used for Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs), so anything that can be done to improve waste handling has to be good news. Miraclon customer Nägele Digital Repro GmbH of Kempten, Germany has worked with a local engineering firm to develop an inhouse waste water recycling system, so that waste can be dealt with efficiently for recycling and without the associated transportation emissions.

Sustainability certifications on the rise

Mon, 02/10/2023 - 16:20

medium_laurel2015.jpgThe Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner

It’s tempting to be cynical about certifications, and easy to dismiss them as cosmetic marketing. But given the intense competitiveness of today’s graphics business, certifications at least demonstrate that a company has undergone some sort of accountability process. This is true for environmentally aware print service providers such as Ashley House printing in the UK and Druckstudio Gruppe in Germany. It’s increasingly true for manufacturers as well.

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