Exploring Sustainability from a Packaging Perspective

Q & A with Brad Leonard, VP of Packaging Innovation and Sustainability at CAPE Systems, Inc.

Q. How do you define “sustainability”?

A. From CAPE’s perspective, and the role our software plays in the overall sustainability movement, Sustainability is the impact your product, materials, packaging and palletization methods impact the cost, space utilization, storage, transportation and distribution costs as your product moves through the product lifecycle supply chain

Q. Does sustainability, by definition, have to include renewable energy as an element? How about optimizing materials and energy?

A. Sustainability as a whole concept definitely includes renewable energy sources.  However many companies today can’t control where and how they receive the energy they use to manufacture their products.  But what they can focus on is using raw materials that consume less energy to manufacture, look for ways to use less energy in the manufacturing of their own products, and begin using alternative materials that are recycled, reusable or renewable.

Q. What is the brief history of the concept of sustainability? What factors prompted it to become a business concept?

A. We feel Sustainability has always been a factor in the manufacturing of a product, as wasted space and materials always leads to wasted costs, regardless of whether or not it was ever given a specific name.  The Packaging Industry sprung from the need to better package our products with the best available materials and practices.  However in the 1970’s with the Green movement and public awareness such as Earth Day, many industries began to think about the cost of Packaging and the impact on the environment, and started promoting this awareness as the 3 R’s, Reduce, Reuse or Recycle.  The current framework for Sustainability has grown the 3 R’s into the 7 R’s, which now encompasses the entire product lifecycle, and can be used to measure almost every manufacturing process for every product available.

Q. What are some of the myths or misconceptions about what constitutes sustainability?

A. That Sustainability can only be achieved by changing the packaging materials to something different.  That new manufacturing technologies must be adopted.  That it costs more to consider Sustainable alternatives.  That Sustainability only applies to manufacturing the final product the consumer purchases.  That becoming more Sustainable won’t make a difference in the total picture.  We can do a lot with what we already know and have available to us.  And we need to remember that every little thing we can do will add up to make an impact.

Q. What elements factor into sustainability from a packaging perspective (from start to finish)?

A. The cost and method of creating, recovering or finding and then converting the raw materials and ingredients that will eventually become the packaging materials.  The transportation of the raw materials or ingredients to the point of converting.  The manufacturing of the raw materials in to the finished Packaging materials.  The movement of the finished Packaging materials to the location of manufacturing or assembly.  The types of materials used in the Packaging materials.  The amount of Packaging materials used.  The sizing of the products and the packaging.  Eliminating unnecessary packaging.  How well the shipping and storage space is utilized when shipping or storing the product.  The costs of storage and shipping for the product.  The amount of materials the consumer puts back into the recycle stream.

Q. What should packaging companies be mindful of today regarding sustainability?

A. That there are many Sustainable options, at many different levels, for any product and it’s life cycle, but until a thorough analysis is done for every option, across the entire life cycle, looking at every available opportunity, along with all the associated suppliers and customers input and their Sustainability goals, it is difficult to arrive at the best possible solution.

Q. How can they best implement a sustainability program?

A. Every large initiative starts with a small step.  Learn everything you can, attend meetings and join organizations, to cross fertilize your thought process.  Look at your company’s strengths and weakness, start small, and let the ideas grow from there.  And get everyone in your organization to understand the company goals, the positive impact it will have, and ask for continuing suggestions from everyone involved.  Perhaps go as far as creating a new Sustainability position within the organization that is responsible for the company’s goals, and tracking them.

Q. Let’s say a packaging-company executive approaches you saying he wants to pursue a sustainability program—what do you recommend he do step by step? Please provide a walk-through of what should occur.

A. Put a person in charge at a high enough level, to get done whatever needs to be done, to design, implement and develop a sustainability program.  Discuss what the company’s goals will be, in real numbers, be it pounds of material, dollars of cost or savings, trees per year, board feet, gross tons, trucks used, sea containers saved, new warehouses not required, etc.  Join Sustainability organizations and attend conferences to learn everything you can. Get all the different departments together to determine who is responsible for what pieces of the puzzle, and get everyone working together sharing information.  Talk to customers and vendors to hear what they can do to contribute.  Start with the easy, low cost initiatives, and then expand into the longer term changes.  Implement the ideas and projects that are available.  Track the data and savings and regularly share within the organization.  Make it a company philosophy embraced by everyone.  Invite new ideas and creativity, to develop a continuous flow of new sustainability ideas.

Q. How do financial cost and material use play off one another in a top-notch sustainability relationship?

A. You have to consider the total cost to find, create and process the raw materials. You have to consider the cost to renew where the raw materials came from. You have to consider the cost of moving the raw materials to the converting process location.  You have to consider the cost to convert the raw materials into the finished packaging materials.  And you have to consider the cost to make the product from the materials, and how well it can be packaged, stored, shipped and sold.  Then you have to consider the cost once the consumer is done, to reclaim, recycle or reuse the material, and the cost to move it around the waste system.  So it is just not the final cost to package a product in one material compared to another that determines the true trade off of material versus sustainability.

Q. What should a packaging engineer expect in a sustainability software package? Should there be several versions to choose from?

A. A software program that addresses sustainability should easily show the user the alternatives available, lets the user easily evaluate their alternatives based on their products and materials and packaging methods, show the user the impact each alternative has whether it be a cost or unit of measure, and the percentage of the total sustainability scorecard that the software provides results for.  I do not think any one software program is available today that covers all the packaging aspects of sustainability, but I know of one that comes very close.

Q. How will that packaging engineer determine which one suits their operation best? What factors should be considered?

A. Ease of use, customer support and service history, and how well that software meets their needs.

Q. What are the benefits to the company initiating a sustainability program? (financial, ecological, public relations/marketing, etc.)

A. All of these are very good benefits that a company can derive from an active Sustainability program.  And the more variables they can measure, the broader the impact on all the benefits.  But I think the most noticeable benefits will be dollars to the bottom line, better packaging practices, and less waste going the landfills, and less greenhouse gases, creating a better environment for the next generation.

Q. Can companies trumpet their participation in a sustainability program to show they have an environmental concern? Is this already being done by some companies? Is it a good idea?

A. It is becoming more and more important for companies to step up and announce their sustainability programs, and what they are currently doing.  They can also benchmark their added contributions over time.  Many companies are already doing this and I believe we will start to see it become part of every corporate culture, even from the highest ranks of most companies.

Q. From an operational standpoint, what should a “well-greased” sustainability program accomplish?

A. Continued evaluation of all possible alternatives, and constant communication both within the organization and with all vendors and customers, to develop a breeding ground for all new ideas and accelerate those that show real potential.

Q. Is sustainability a huge undertaking for a company? If so, what can be done to minimize the “shock” to affected employees?

A. Start small and look at what you can easily do today.  You’ll be surprised if you explain the concept to everyone, state your goals, and then begin asking for suggestions.  Those who do these things all day sometimes have the best ideas.  Once everyone is working together, if will become second nature and a way of business.  Look around the marketplace and learn from others.  Everyone is in this together and there is no competition to be “better” than someone else.  Every little piece will help the total picture. 

Q. Can sustainability help move a new product to market more rapidly than other methods?

A. Yes, if used correctly and not used to bog down the process with multiple options.  Plus earlier acceptance on the part of the retailer is always a benefit.
 
Q. The Dow Jones has various sustainability indexes to track company performance—how does that work?  Is it something companies need to be mindful of today? Is it taken seriously?

A. The Dow Jones has Sustainability Indexes, which represent the top 10% of the largest 2,500 companies in the world and track the financial performance of the leading sustainability driven companies worldwide.  This makes Sustainability more of a corporate issue, and will show how well these businesses embrace the concerns of Sustainability, and return value to the stakeholders.

Q. What kinds of parameters can companies develop for internal use to monitor how well their sustainability efforts are performing? Do formulas exist, for example, to rack that?

A. If the departments can work together and share information, I would think any company can benchmark what they are doing today, and use that baseline to begin tracking sustainability savings.  This can be comprised of resourcing costs, converting methods & costs, delivery costs of the materials, manufacturing costs, delivery costs, board feet, pounds of material used, miles driven, warehouse space required, gallons of fuel used, trees used, gases emitted, etc.  Some software programs capture some of this data and can provide calculations for different options.

Q. How should companies go about determining whether a sustainability effort is financially realistic?

A. Comparing the cost of doing business today, with the cost of implementing a sustainability program, and the impact it will have on the environment, and their ability to maintain their retail accounts, customer loyalty, brand recognition & market share.

Q. What are some examples of packaging or other types of operations that are NOT ready to move into the sustainability arena or would not benefit from such a move?

A. I’m not sure just yet, as logical thinking supports the concept that any process could be improved with some amount of sustainability, if you look at it broad enough.

Q. What are your predictions for the next few years on how sustainability will figure into the packaging world? How about the business world at large?

A. I see Sustainability growing tremendously, to become a major focal point for any packaging professional, and how they perform their job.  It will impact the packaging functions of every manufacturer, and how they manufacture and package their products.  I think Sustainability will become a major corporate issue that will be shared publicly and be used as a measuring device for stakeholder value.

Q. Do you have specific statistics you can share demonstrating the worth of sustainability?

A. Every penny saved in the manufacturing, packaging, storage and distribution of the product goes directly to the company bottom line, adding immediate profit, without having to increase sales, increase market share or increase prices.  And with the cost of these functional areas valued at roughly 10% of the total company revenue, it is easy to see just how big the savings can be.

Brad Leonard, VP Package Innovation & Sustainability

CAPE Systems, Inc.
100 Allentown Pkwy., #218
Allen, TX 75002
800-229-3434
www.capesystems.com
bleonard@capesystems.com