ABOUT US
We're Naturally Green
Back in 2001 when ImageSet Digital installed its first digital press, the
concept of environmentally-friendly business practices was not
part of the mainstream business world. We at ImageSet Digital
recognized even back then the efficiencies of an all-digital
workflow, but it’s only been in recent years that the inherent
“greenness” of the digital process – from the inks it prints
with to the minimal energy it consumes – came to light
as the ideal in environmentally-correct printing. In other
words, we were green before green was cool.
Following is information detailing how digital printing, and
more specifically, our HP Indigo digital presses, leave a
smaller footprint on our environment.
WHY DIGITAL PRINTING IS NATURALLY GREEN
With digital printing, waste, time, and consequently, energy, are
saved through a number of efficiencies. Digital printing can
be carried out direct from digital artwork files, without the
need for intermediary media.
While film and plate processing no longer require the large amount of equipment they once did, there are
still issues of waste chemical solution disposal, fume extraction and disposal or storage of the used plates
and films, as well as recognized health problems associated with processing silver halide films – e.g., agyria.
While some of the waste, time and cost-savings may now
be taken for granted as they have become the basic
assumptions in discussions of digital printing, the reality is
that digital printing remains a small, if growing, percentage
of global print volumes. Digital printing is, however, being
increasingly adopted as a complementary technology to
conventional production, and it has the advantage of
being ideally suited to modern marketing methods as well as further enabling the democratization of print.
The fact remains that using a digital press instead of a conventional one will have less environmental impact.
PRINT BUYING AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Apart from the benefits made possible through the elimination of film and plate production, savings on
substrate and storage costs throughout the supply chain are considerable. In 1993, when the first HP Indigo
digital presses were introduced, it was estimated that about 56 percent of all print was thrown away
unused(1) and as recently as 2003, it was estimated that this figure had fallen to 31 percent. This was a
consequence of the focus on ‘unit cost’ by print buyers and sellers.
Digital printing has shifted the focus from unit cost to ‘unit value’. Using some of the benefits of digital
printing, like variable data printing and the ability to print on a wide variety of substrates, the perceived
value of printed products goes up, and in the case of applications such as direct mail, new measurements
like ‘cost per response’ can be used.
HOW HP INDIGO PRESSES SUPPORT ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE PRINTING
Printing is an industrial process, but digital printing is a computerized process, which is by nature less
demanding of resources and less wasteful than conventional print. Savings due to the changing print market
favor digital printing with its streamlined workflow. Run lengths are falling so that a higher proportion of jobs
are within the range of cost effective digital production. In a report by InfoTrends, ‘The Cost of Color Print,’(2) it is
estimated that today 69.9 percent of all commercial color
jobs can be printed cost-effectively on digital presses. This
brings many jobs into range that would be less efficiently
and more wastefully produced if printed conventionally. With HP Indigo digital technology, further benefits
are designed into the presses as part of HP’s commitment to providing customers with inventive, high-quality
products and services that are environmentally sound through their lifecycles.
EMISSIONS AND WASTE
Like all printing presses, the operation of our HP Indigo digital presses produces waste and emissions.
However, as runs become shorter, the levels of waste and emissions per job become lower compared to
conventional printing.
Waste
Imaging oil is used to dilute our ElectroInk,
which is paste-like in consistency and
contained in a tubular cartridge. Normal
disposal of oil by a licensed waste hauler
is all that is required.
Liquid electrophotographic printing uses
imaging oil as a liquid carrier. During the
printing process, oil is evaporated from the
image. The vapor and ambient air are
drawn into the cooler by a blower and
the cooler condenses the oil and ambient
water vapor into a liquid.
The Oil Recycling System referred to
above separates the oil from the water
and then ink additives are added to the recycled imaging oil according to need. The recycled oil is fed
back to the press ready to be used by the printing process. The water generated during the separation
process can be disposed of in a municipal drain.
Additional sources of waste in our digital presses include: Empty ink cartridges, used blankets, used Photo
Imaging Plate (PIP), Binary Ink Developer (BID), and cleaning rags. Under U.S. Federal EPA criteria, because
none of these waste products is classed as hazardous waste, so they can be disposed of by licensed waste
haulers.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
During the printing process, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are released from the inks used in the press.
However, none of HP Indigo’s inks or other supplies contain substances that are listed on the U.S. Federal list
of Hazardous Air Pollutants as established under Section 112 of the Federal Clean Air Act (42 USCA § 7412). Ozone
Ozone exposure levels in the workplace are subject to control and regulation across the world. HP Indigo
presses produce ozone at low levels, generated by the scorotron
and charge roller that charges the photoreceptor.
In regular operation, ozone peak levels are found to be
well below the international occupational health
standard of 100ppb for an eight-hour exposure level.
In HP Indigo presses, the ozone is captured by highly
efficient charcoal absorber cartridges which are
replaced after one million impressions.
ELECTROINK
ImageSet Digital’s presses use ElectroInk. A liquid ink
in an offset-like process, ElectroInk produces the “look
and feel of offset” that differentiates it from dry toner
digital printing.
Heavy metals
Based on the formulation of ElectroInks and information received
from suppliers, HP ElectroInk products do not contain lead, cadmium,
mercury or hexavalent chromium in a combined concentration exceeding
100 parts per million by weight of the ink in the dry state.
DIGITAL PRESSES AND RECYCLED STOCKS
Increasingly, companies are under pressure to look at their practices and purchases to ensure they follow
environmental guidelines. Our digital presses can print on more than 1,000 coated, uncoated and specialty
substrates from third party substrate providers all over the world. Leading paper suppliers have developed
their own recycled, or “eco friendly papers”, many of which run on our digital presses.
Today, there is an evolutionary change happening in the world of paper and it is easier to identify which
companies are taking the measures appropriate to ensure the highest standards. Fiber conservation, forest
stewardship, energy reduction, and clean stream emissions are of high priority to the manufacturers and
users of papers. “Eco friendly papers” are not restricted to recycled stocks, but a range of classifications
enable informed choices.
Key environmental points about ImageSet Digital’s HP Indigo presses
• Under U.S. Federal EPA criteria, no HP Indigo waste stream is classed as hazardous waste. They can be
disposed of by licensed waste haulers.
• HP ElectroInk 4.0 products do not contain any substance listed under California Proposition 65, which is
widely known as a landmark in setting high regulatory standards.
• HP Indigo presses can print on a variety of recycled papers and papers with recycled content – coated
and uncoated.
• Used consumables from HP Indigo presses (PIPs, BIDs, blankets, ink cartridges) require only standard disposal
by licensed waste haulers.
(1) Interconsult, 1994
(2) InfoTrends,“The Cost of Color Print,” October 16, 2006
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