Every day, we work with clients who stand for more than what they do for business. They take an interest in wider causes, and engage with those causes to make a difference in our world. It’s important as a business to stand for more. VP Demand Creation Services has several sustainable use, environmentally friendly initiatives that are company standard, and we encourage our clients to participate in them, too.
As a longstanding printer and publisher, we understand the importance of incorporating sustainability initiatives into the running of our business to ensure that our business conduct and processes – for ourselves and our clients – will help to enrich the future.
We recycle the scrap from each of the 35 magazine titles regularly printed every year. Each machine in our facility which trims paper in any manner is attached to a “Cyclone System” which vacuums all paper scraps into a large bale (imagine a very large hay bale). Then, the scrap bale is removed from the Cyclone, weighed, and sent to a recycling facility. In 2014 alone, we recycled 345 skids of paper – 400,886 pounds!
Bales of Scrap Handled (number of skids)
For our foodservice clients, we offer gang printing and co-shipping initiatives, created with sustainability in mind:
For all printing jobs, regardless of industry, we practice responsible material selection:
Our clients adhere to a very high standard of environmental conduct through how they – and we – conduct business. We take the extra, important step of quantifying these efforts by gathering measurements on many Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to help clients prove their sustainability commitment and effectiveness – and certify them as Enviro-Smart Marketers. This certification is unique to VP Demand Creation Services.
We created a Sustainability Scorecard to help our customers meet the criteria. All of the above-mentioned sustainability initiatives are a part of this certification.
Most companies have grown aware that how they operate their business makes an impact, and their company can contribute in the world and in their communities environmentally, socially, and politically. Our clients practice responsible marketing and fulfillment through working with us, but that’s only part of their story. They are invested in other areas as well, and the initiatives they are committed to inspire us to do more. Here are examples from a few of our clients:
High Liner Foods: North America’s largest marketer of prepared frozen seafood products is committed to delivering Responsibly Sourced Seafood to its customers. They work in collaboration with other organizations and certifying bodies to ensure this. This 2014 infographic describes some of these efforts more in detail. High Liner also has plans for other areas of their business, such as energy efficiency, packaging, and recycling.
Hagerty: A global company, Hagerty still focuses on the community level. In Traverse City, for instance, the company participates and sponsors the annual Smart Commute Competition. “For car nuts, we’re pretty responsible about how we get to work. Our yearly Smart Commute Competition helps encourage us,” reports Hagerty.com. Smart Commute Week is a national initiative to help encourage individuals and businesses to reduce their carbon footprint and increase physical activity. Participants can bike, walk, jog, rollerblade, or carpool, all in an effort to reduce traffic flow and improve air quality. Hagerty also supports the classic car community through youth programs, the Historic Vehicle Association, car clubs, and an education program.
American Bonanza Society: The nonprofit arm of the Society, the ABS Air Safety Foundation, is a well-respected authority and advocate in General Aviation. One of their initiatives was participating in the Clean 100 Octane Coalition, of which the ABS Air Safety Foundation is a founding member, which helped fund the Coalition’s participation in the Unleaded Avgas Transition Aviation Rulemaking Committee (UAT-ARC) meetings. The purpose of this committee was “to recommend to the FAA the process by which 100LL [low lead] avgas replacement fuels should be evaluated and selected,” according to bonanza.org. These replacement fuels need to accommodate high-power piston engines such as Bonanzas. This was done successfully and was an important step toward finding an unleaded aviation fuel solution. The ABS Air Safety Foundation continues to be involved.
Our team members take it upon themselves to contribute sustainability opportunities that make an impact on our company’s operations. These not only make an impact on the environment, they help streamline company processes and procedures, too, and set higher standards of environmental consciousness. Here are just three examples of employees making a difference:
We also have company policies about shutting down monitors and equipment, and all are encouraged to turn off lights when they’re not needed. And during company luncheons, plates, napkins, and cups are all recyclable. We have made sustainability a priority at VP Demand Creation Services because these efforts reduce our carbon footprint, help increase our clients’ ROI, and help streamline processes.
There are so many ways your company can get smart with sustainability. Though you probably have initiatives like this going on in your company, more can always be done. What else could your company be doing?
