Eco-Friendly Printing

2. December 2007 by admin.

We are very interested in keeping ourselves up with information on how to be as eco-friendly as possible. Here are some tips that we found online to assist you in marketing that will have the highest impact on your potential customers and the lowest impact on the environment.

First and most obvious:

Make sure you absolutely can’t do a paper free campaign - Can you make a website that conveys your point? Send out an email brochure?

(The Detroit Studio is great at creating both of these and would be happy to give you a quote for either b.t.w. …. please click here to see some examples of things we have created for other people:

If not then here are some pretty helpful tips that we found on www.urbanimpact.com :

Recycled Paper? Yes! (The Detroit Studio prints on recycled paper)

Soy Ink? Yes! (The Detroit Studio uses soy ink)

But that’s just a start. Keeping your marketing eco-friendly isn’t only a consideration for one to make during production …… It can start when the design of your project starts.
Design to Prevent Waste. Put more words on a page by using smaller fonts and margins. It is not necessary to begin a chapter on the right side of facing pages. Choose a thin cover stock or eliminate the cover.

Double-Side Documents. Be sure to use both sides of the page whenever possible.

Order Only What You Need. Volume discounts may make it economical to order more, but can you really use 1000 or 5000? Anticipate corrections and changes (will your business be moving or changing its phone number?).

Request Vegetable-Based Ink. Soy and other vegetable-based inks help prevent air and water pollution. They also give brighter colors and rub off less on the reader’s hands.

Request Least Toxic Colors. Some ink colors are less friendly than others because their pigments contain toxic heavy metals. Ask about heavy metals when choosing colored ink. Avoid metallic and fluorescent inks.

…and Recyle

Choose Paper That is Locally Recyclable. White paper is usually the most recyclable. Avoid fluorescent and goldenrod paper. Avoid plastic covers and bindings.

Ask for Recycled Paper. Help complete the recycling loop. Recycled paper may cost a bit more, but you can offset these costs by preventing waste printing fewer copies and fitting more words on each page. Remember to ask about the recycled content and the post-consumer content of the paper. Fifty percent post-consumer means that half of the paper is made of materials that were consumed and recycled. If the post-consumer content of recycled paper is not specified, it is probably made from manufacturing wastes which have not made a complete loop.

Look for “Tree-Free” Paper. Alternative fibers such as kenaf, cereal straw, and sugar beet pulp are used to make beautiful paper.

About Vegetable-Based Ink. Vegetable-based printing ink is made with vegetable oil, such as soybean or corn oil, as a substitute for petroleum.

Vegetable-based inks significantly reduce the amount of VOCs (volatile organic compounds) released into the air during printing. When the Los Angeles Times switched to soy-based ink, they reduced their VOC emissions by 200 tons per year and won an air quality award.

While vegetable oils are a renewable resource, the pigment suspended in those oils is an often toxic ingredient for which there are few substitutes. Certain colors of ink, even vegetable-based ink, contain heavy-metal pigments like cadmium, barium, and copper, which are associated with various health hazards. If you choose colored ink, ask the printer for a color without heavy metals.

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