HP's sustainable impact programmes, such as reducing product usage greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent by 2025 compared to 2015, contributed $900m in new revenues in 2018, up by 35 per cent compared to 2017, writes Laurel Brunner.
Sustainability initiatives are all about driving change and about creating new expectations amongst business owners and their customers. Big brands are already pushing the graphics industry to shape up, and major vendors in the graphics business are taking steps to support environmentally friendly production models.
HP Inc is without doubt the biggest player in the graphics industry, net revenue in 2018 was a cool $58.3bn. The R&D spend alone for the year was $1.4bn. As a founding member of the Verdigris print environmental project, we are glad to have HP’s support and glad they can afford it. Support is what environmental impact mitigation is all about, especially now when sustainability and the planet’s health are in crisis.
Sustainability efforts from HP, Kodak, Miraclon, Ricoh et al, however are grounded in commercial reality: if the planet crashes and burns, there is no business, only survival. So the more investment into developing the foundations for circular, low carbon economies, the better. It makes good sound business sense, both in the near future and long term.
By 2025, 30 per cent of HP's printing systems hardware and supplies will be recycled plastics. At 23 per cent of its target, HP Inc is already well on the way to achieving it. The amount of recycled plastics in printing products is 4700 tonnes, up by 270 per cent compared to only two years ago.
Rather more impressive for a company so wedded to the cloud is the aim to power global operations with 100 per cent renewable energy by 2035. Cutting energy usage and emissions in supply chains is where much more effort should be focused. The goal is for a 10 per cent cut by 2025, so far zero per cent of the target has been reached.
HP is also working with publishers to develop viable on demand printing models, which could make a massive difference. A partnership with Elle Magazine, part of the Hachette stable, is delivering an on demand version of the magazine, with the covers printed on 100 per cent recycled materials and the body pages on paper with 30 per cent recycled content.
The HP Piazzo project, matching publishers to print service providers, should be a good platform for improved sustainability in publishing. And for the printing industry the HP strategy is to help make commercial print cash flows more predictable with clearer returns on investment.
Sustainability is about protecting the environment, but it is also about protecting a company’s top and bottom lines, including those of its customers. More big players in the graphics industry should recognise this, and then we might make even more progress.
This article was produced by the Verdigris Project, an industry initiative intended to raise awareness of print’s positive environmental impact. This weekly commentary helps printing companies keep up to date with environmental standards, and how environmentally friendly business management can help improve their bottom lines. Verdigris is supported by the following companies: Agfa Graphics, EFI, Fespa, HP, Kodak, Kornit, Ricoh, Spindrift, Splash PR, Unity Publishing and Xeikon.