Debra Rizzi, a founding partner of Manasquan, New Jersey-based Rizco Design recently launched the company’s BeLeaf initiative—a measurable sustainability program ensuring a percentage of each job is environmentally correct. Rizco Design planted some green while designing call for entries materials for the Art Director’s Club of New Jersey. This year’s theme is “Jersey Produce: Organic Design Grown to Perfection.” What makes these pieces green? They utilized eco-friendly printing and paper, were produced to minimize resources and the end products are recyclable.
Rizzi noted the job is also a perfect example of gang running, which lowers costs, eliminates waste and reduces energy. “We fit the invitation, call for entries postcard announcement, awards hangtag and brochure cover all on one form to allow for color consistency, cost effectiveness and to minimize resources. From an environmental standpoint, gang runs maximize the sheet of paper, so there is less waste. They also minimize running time, ink, energy and only require one set of plates for the job,” she said.
“All of the components were offset-printed with limited ink coverage,” continued Rizzi. “[We used] four, flat PMS colors on Mohawk, Beckett Concept, Ocean Mist #80 Cover. [The paper] is FSC-Certified, 100 percent recycled, carbon neutral, Green-e certified, windpowered and Green Seal Certified. The envelopes are engraved in one color on Carnival Coco vellum text, which is made from 50 percent total recycled fiber, including 30 percent post consumer waste.”
Rizzi went on to share design tips for projects that are both eco- and budget-friendly:
• Specify smaller-sized collateral so it can fit on a smaller-sized press sheet to eliminate waste.
• Design a piece so it can be easily updated. For example, bind a brochure together with a rubber band instead of with gluing or stapling.
• Utilize PDFs rather than printed proofs as often as possible to minimize the amount of comps produced.
• End-users are open-minded about having environmentally-friendly logos placed on collateral, but there is a challenge when they overcrowd a small piece. The most important information to note is the recycled content and a ‘Please Recycle’ reminder.
• Minimize printing processes where applicable, and minimize colors and ink coverage as much as possible. Avoid or limit metallic and fluorescent inks, most of which are petroleum-based and contain heavy metals. (Quick Tip: Sun Chemical just released Metal-Eco, a vegetable-based metallic ink.)
• The older the tree, the more CO2 stored inside. Cutting down older trees releases more CO2 into the atmosphere, resulting in temperature increases and global warming. Therefore, specify an FSC-certified paper with high recycled content. A current misconception about recycled stock is it takes more energy to de-ink post-consumer waste in order to recycle it. However, there are a variety of coated, uncoated, colored and textured FSC-certified stocks with high recycled content offering cost-effective options for high-quality end-products. Furthermore, specify lighter-weight papers, which consist of less wood fiber.
• Avoid UV coatings since they are mineral-based. The process needs a lot of energy to produce and is difficult to recycle. In addition, because they emit VOCS, laminates are not recyclable. (Quick Tip: Dikeman Laminating Corp. has introduced a biodegradable laminate called Nature’s Choice.)
“Several resources, including The University of Melbourne’s marketing and communications guidelines, state that paper with foil stamping is virtually non-recyclable because the polyester film is almost impossible to remove from the pulp,” added Rizzi. “[However], I’ve been in close communication with the Foil Stamping & Embossing Association, which has a 10-year-old report supporting findings that foil stamping is biodegradable and recyclable, but the company that produced the report is out of business. There are still outstanding questions about whether the metal/aluminum by-product that is removed can be reused or is a straight-to-landfill item. Currently, the by-product of offset printing inks creates a sludge that can be burned off for energy or utilized as fertilizer. Since findings are not firm, we opt to avoid foil as much as possible.”
In general, industry professionals are urged to advise and reinforce the importance of recycling with clients, and provide steps for products that include staples, wire, plastic comb binding or glue. “The Environmental Paper Network recently published a document, ‘The State of the Paper Industry: Monitoring the Indicators of Environmental Performance,’ which stated more than 16 million annual tons of high-grade paper suitable for making recycled printing and writing paper could still be recovered from offices, printers and other sources,” Rizzi reported. “The role of graphic designers is not just to make sustainable design and paper choices, but to educate end-users about the importance of recycling their end-product and keep[ing] it out of a landfill.”
For more information, visit www.rizcodesign.com or call (866) 702-5600.
- People:
- Debra Rizzi
- Places:
- Manasquan
- New Jersey