Sustainable Green Printing (SGP) certified partner, Designtex has turned a profit of thousands of dollars
in cost savings and more than 35 tons of recycling achieved from eliminating all Low- and High-Density
In 2018, Designtex took action toward its zero production-landfill goal by forming partnerships with its
own vendors and others in the community. They eliminated all waste in categories and generated
thousands of dollars in profit from their recycled goods at the same time.
Designtex now gets paid to return hybrid packaging materials to its vendor for reuse. One of Designtex’s
vendors pays for the return of not only their own HDPE waste but all HDPE waste generated by the
facility. LDPE waste is delivered to a composite decking manufacturer as part of a joint program with
other companies generating LDPE waste. A local composting company composts all organic waste from
the facility for reuse as soil in the employee garden.
Paul Glynn, Designtex Manager of Materials and Digital Technology R&D and sustainability ambassador,
credits employee buy-in with the success of its recycling program and other sustainability initiatives. “By
working with employees from all departments,” he said, “the organization was able to design the flow
around the program so that the program fits right in.”
When advising other facilities about sustainability, Glynn always recommends that they start with a
small, achievable goal, learn from there, and expand. “Don’t forget to reach out to suppliers,” he added.
“They may already have a sustainability initiative or may be willing to collaborate to create one.”
The Sustainable Green Printing Partnership (SGP) is a non-profit organization that certifies printing
facilities' sustainability best practices.
