Contact Originators, a leading flexo platemaker for the UK and European corrugated, flexible packaging and labels markets, has signed up to the United Nations Global Compact to support the creation of more sustainable supply chains for the print and packaging industries.
The UN Global Compact, the world’s largest sustainability initiative, unites over 15,000 companies and 4,000 non-business participants globally in their commitment to building a sustainable future. The Compact is a call to action for companies around the world to align their operations and strategies with 10 principles in the areas of human rights, labour, the environment, and anti-corruption.
Nick Mitchell, Operations Director at Contact Originators, said: “As a key supplier to the print and packaging industries we are committed to leading by example and setting a benchmark for others when it comes to sustainable operations. However, this is not only about Contact Originators as an individual business; our focus is to improve sustainability performance along the supply chains that we operate in, so that our customers and their customers benefit too.”
Contact Originators, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, has achieved zero waste to landfill within the first 12 months of taking up occupancy at its new 32,000ft2 site in Dukinfield, Greater Manchester. All waste produced in the platemaking process is collected by a waste management company and incinerated – the resultant energy returns to circulation.
Meanwhile, the company’s 24,000 litre super still, affectionately named Goliath by employees, is heated by steam rather than oil to enhance sustainability performance further. It’s the largest still used for platemaking in Europe!
From motion-activated lighting to best-in-class machines and advanced technologies to create greater efficiencies in production, Contact Originators is home to one of the best equipped prepress sites and one of the most sustainable large-scale operations in Europe today.
Steve Mulcahy, CEO of Contact Group, added: “Our aim is to support the creation of a responsible, resource-efficient and ethically sound print and packaging industry that we can all be proud of. By joining the UN Global Compact, it enables us to align our own company ambitions and values with a much larger framework relating to environmental, social and governance matters. At the same time we have the opportunity to engage with other members and share best practices within our industry.”
