The Label Printers begins project for TLMI LIFE certification

US converter The Label Printers has begun its solid waste reduction project – the company’s next step in achieving TLMI’s Label Initiative For the Environment (LIFE) ‘Green’ certification. 

‘Our goal is to reduce solid waste sent to landfills by 60 percent or more,’ explained George Tommasi, director of human resources and The Label Printer’s Illinois EPA compliance representative. ‘We wanted our major certification project to be something that had significant impact to the environment and the company. We had been sending the equivalent of over 24 trailers of waste to landfills every year, so we felt that this project definitely met our criteria.’ 

The Label Printers’ LIFE. team (Tommasi, Gina Ries, Matt Slaughter and Dawn Tesch) have been working since May to choose and plan the project. The team analyzed and sorted their solid waste into three categories: recyclable, waste to energy (fuel pellets), and unrecyclable solid waste (landfill). They have written a sustainability manual which has been submitted, along with certification materials, to TLMI for evaluation by the LIFE team, and are preparing for the LIFE program’s desk audit – which will take place early in 2011. The last step in the process will be a site audit in the spring of 2011. TLMI has partnered with NSF International for the audits. 

‘Being “green” is a no-brainer,’ said Lori Campbell, The Label Printers’ chief of operations.  ‘A program like LIFE, done right, means you’re reducing waste and therefore cost, improving operations, getting your employees engaged and thinking, and being a good citizen of the planet – all at the same time. We’re looking forward to seeing the team’s plans come to life.’

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