Packaging

Accredo Packaging Lowers the Carbon Footprint of Flexible Packaging Production

Friday 10. December 2010 - Accredo Packaging, Inc., a member of the API Group of Companies, has recently achieved a milestone in its quest to be the world's lowest-carbon-footprint manufacturer of flexible packaging and extruded films. Accredo's year-old production facility is now Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) silver certified by the U.S. Green Building Council.

“The company owners envisioned a new flexible packaging division that, from the ground up, would embody the principles of business, social, and environmental sustainability,” said Kevin McCarthy, vice president and general manager of Accredo. “Furthermore, every major piece of equipment in our silver-certified, 200,000 square-foot plant is state of the art, in terms of low environmental impact, high quality, and world-class productivity.”
McCarthy said that, since Accredo began production in August 2009, brand owners and retailers have enthusiastically embraced the company’s twin goals of lowering the environmental impact of flexible packaging and extruded film production, while producing competitively priced offerings. He added, “Our sustainability efforts feed directly into our customers’ Corporate Social Responsibility objectives.”
Sustainable Production at Accredo Packaging
The Accredo production facility is 100 percent wind powered. The design of the facility minimizes carbon emissions during the production process. Building materials were sourced locally, and recycled materials were used whenever possible.
Accredo’s printing process is exclusively extended color gamut process printing. The proprietary ink delivery system supplies ink directly to the ten-color, 2,000 feet-per-minute W&H Novoflex CL printing presses, which reduces ink consumption by 35 percent and ink waste by 95 percent. Solvent usage is 80 percent lower than similar speed presses and 99.5 percent of solvent emissions are scrubbed clean. Press uptime is 40 percent above previous generation printing systems. The plant also features state-of-the-art nine- and three-layer extruders, a 1,500 feet-per-minute laminator, and stand-up pouch and wicketer bag-making machines.