1.01. Ecodesign management system adapted to the graphics arts industry: A case study
David Pérez, Vicente de Gracia, Juan Carlos Iglesias, Susana Otero
Technological Institute of Optics, Colour and Imaging, AIDO
C/ Nicolás Copérnico 7-13
46980 Paterna, Valencia, Spain
The Ecodesing or Design for Environment (DfE), which is defined as “Design process which considers the environmental impacts in every steps of the design and development of the products, in order to achieve products
with the minimum environmental impacts as possible during their life cycle”, has appeared in the last years as a response of the increasing environmental conscience in the industrial sectors.
The traditional design process can be adapted to Ecodesign through the integration of some changes, in order to not focusing the environmental improvements only in the production stages but also in the continuous improvement of the environmental behavior of the products and services.
The succesful implementation of Ecodesign in the organizations needs an “Ecodesign Management System”, focus on a systematic continuous improvement of the products and services from their design and development, by means of an environmental management system.
The objective of the present research is to define an “Ecodesign Management System adapted to the Graphics Arts Industry”. In order of obtaining real information about the effectiveness of the Ecodesing Management Systems in the Graphic Arts SMEs, there has been developed a practice case with the cooperation of a Spanish company.
Keywords: Ecodesign (design for environment), environment, graphic industry, management
1.02. Changes in sustainability due to technology development in selected printing processes
Pentti Viluksela(1), Minna Nors(2), Hanna Pihkola(2), Katri Behm(2), Helena Wessman(2), Tiina Pajula(2)
(1) Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences
Vanha maantie 6, 02650 Espoo, Finland
P.O.Box 70, 02150 Espoo, Finland
In the paper, changes in the environmental impacts of the printing processes are discussed. The analysis is focused on the interdependence between technology development and environmental load. Environmental load is analysed based on the annual input and output data that was collected from Finnish printing houses from years 2006 and 2007. Information on recent technical and process development was compiled from the literature and interviews with industry experts.
Energy efficiency and material efficiency are the main topics of the paper. Material efficiency is described by means of material use, waste output and waste sorting. The results are presented regarding sheet-fed offset, coldset web offset and heatset web offset. In addition, the differences between sheet-fed offset and electrophotography printing are discussed.
The results indicate that on a general level the energy efficiency has improved and that the use of chemicals and output of waste have decreased when compared to the levels of 1990's. Paper consumption per tonne of products has remained the same or even increased, likely due to changes in the production. Finally, environmental impacts of electrophotography seem to differ remarkably from other printing methods.
Keywords: Ecobalance data, energy efficiency, material efficiency, printing technology, sustainability
1.03. Organized alliances in the printing industry
Thomas Mejtoft(1), Åsa Nordin(2)
(1) STFI-Packforsk/Media Technology and Graphic Arts, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH)
Järnvägsgatan 3, SE-891 18 Örnsköldsvik, Sweden
(2) Digital Printing Center, Mid Sweden University
Järnvägsgatan 3, SE-891 18, Örnsköldsvik, Sweden
Franchising has been important in many industries for a long time and organized alliances are a current phenomenon in the Printing Industry, and may be an alternative way for smaller privately owned printing houses to be a part of a larger network to handle rapid changes in the market. The objective of this qualitative case study of three Swedish Organized Alliances is to investigate how companies perceive the importance of organized alliances in the Printing Industry.
This study concludes that there are many different opinions about the use, impact and importance of organized alliances in the Printing Industry. However, the partner companies believe that they acquire value by being part of an organized alliance. The most important advantages are joint purchasing, access to national agreements, large scale advantages and partly access to a franchise brand. The results indicate that different kinds of organized alliances fit different companies because of the focus of the alliance and the difference in support and commitment from the central organization. Both central organizations and many partner companies deem the franchise brand as important for national recognition. Nevertheless, the combination of the franchise brand and the local company brand is a way for printing houses to strengthen both on the local and national market. The major disadvantage of being part of an organized alliance is the high costs compared to the benefits, which has given many respondents a reason to consider leaving the organized alliances.
Keywords: Competitive advantages, organized alliances, printing industry