Potts make rivals green with envy

Potts Print (UK) are always striving for the greenest possible print production process and have invested in Manroland technology for the greatest efficiency possible. Potts have three Manroland presses in their arsenal. The latest is the Roland 700 Hi-Print which is on the go 24/7, with Christmas Day the only time it gets a day off! So far it has chalked up 55 million impressions in two years and the management at Potts have nothing but praise for the company workhorse.

 “The Roland 700 Hi-Print has really boosted our arsenal of presses and enabled us to take on much greater volumes of work and open up a whole new market place,” says Tom Groves, Head of Business Development.

Brian Watson, Head of Production, agrees. “ It really is an excellent machine, very reliable and extremely robust.” The company say that the Manroland presses are ultra efficient which reduces unnecessary waste across the board.Manroland engineers in Germany are constantly aiming to make printing as advanced and environmentally friendly as possible. This means constant attention to emissions, evaporation, fine particles, ink mist, special waste and energy consumption.

For example, the new generation of ROLAND 700s are nearly 20 per cent more energy efficient than models of 15 years ago. There are no combustion processes in the Manroland range, so the emissions are nil. Preventing hazardous evaporation is an important issue, with some countries banning or taxing isopropyl alcohol and evaporative washing agents.

On a press, washing agent evaporation occurs at the washing units for the inking roller, blanket and impression cylinder. But this is reduced on Manroland presses with more precise possibilities for the inking rolling units and brush-type blanket and impression cylinder washing units with virtually closed loops.

The QuickChange Wash means less agent in the fluid collecting pan, thus also reducing evaporation levels. Pollution can also be reduced through alcohol-free (or reduced) printing and Waterless offset printing – options offered by Manroland. The 700 series offers modular cool water circuits and an additional separate cooling circuit for the ink fountain rollers which includes extra green features, including inking unit temperature control with individual zone regulation.

Manroland has also worked to reduce the levels of spray powder in the press room – a potential health hazard for operatives. Solutions include continual improvements to the dosage precision of powder sprayers with settings storable for repeat jobs; and powder extraction systems located at the best positions to effectively suck away the spray powder in the air.

Ink mist can contaminate the area around the press, particularly when printing with UV inks at high speeds. Manroland has installed an extraction device at the upper part of the inking roller system which captures the ink particles flung off the inking rollers by centrifugal force in a filter.

Automatic refillable ink cartridges (ROLAND InkLine) reduces waste and disposal costs. Safe and smear-free sheet travel also helps to cut waste, whilst oil leaks are reduced by the oil being drained with a central pump.

One happy family! Left - Right: John Conway (Sales Director), Carla Armstrong (HR & Corporate Services Director). Brian Watson (Head of Production), Ian White (Creative & Technical Services Director) - Shaun Johnson (Managing Director) Steph Tobin (Finance Director) Tom Groves (Head of Business Development)

Potts now have three Manroland presses, including the Roland 700 Hi-Print, the 'workhorse' of the operation.

 Potts Go Green Philosophy

The case for going Green in industry is becoming more and more unarguable both politically and morally. But does it make sense from a purely business point of view? Potts Print are blazing the green trail with a passion. They claim to be the first Carbon Balanced printing company in the North of England and, at the time of going to press, one of only 14 in the whole country.  Potts Print (UK) argue their “Go Green” philosophy has added momentum to their drive for greater efficiency – savings and benefits that can be passed on to clients. They have enjoyed rapid growth over the last few years, boosting turnover from nearly £10m in 2009 to £14m today, and are the largest independently-owned commercial printing company in the North East.

Their output is made up of roughly 70% commercial printing, 25 per cent packaging, with the remainder dedicated to direct mail. Increasingly, new and existing clients are putting business their way simply because of their Green credentials, clients are happy to endorse- and benefit from - the policy. For example, Potts are the main supplier of literature, brochures, leaflets and in-store visuals for a popular high street brand, whose vice president of marketing, says: “The fact that both production and delivery of these items is completely carbon balanced is of significant benefit to our own carbon reduction targets and overall sustainability commitment.”

For several years Potts have utilised ‘green’ printing systems, such as alcohol-free printing, vegetable-based inks, and waterless printing. Then, two years ago, they began working with a major waste recycling company and within six months they reduced their waste-to-landfill figure to under 1%, with a target of nil. Waste paper is also donated to schools and community projects. All the waste bins on the factory floor have female names, such as Abbie and Faith, to try to humanise the collection process.

Last year they carbon balanced their entire business via a partnership with Howard Smith Paper Group, the Paper Company and the conservation charity World Land Trust. Facts and figures on energy usage and company vehicles, etc, are sent to the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Management who calculate the company’s carbon footprint.

This is then offset by the World Land Trust, through the preservation of endangered tropical rainforests, amounting in Potts’ case to nearly 100,000 square metres of land in 2012. Their philosophy is not just to balance carbon across the business, but also to make sure they’re producing as little as possible in the first place.

The company has a dedicated team of senior management to promote the Green message and all new plant and machinery is assessed with energy efficiency a key factor. It’s a policy that filters from the boardroom to the broom room.

For example, electricity used throughout the entire operation is carbon balanced, even down to the morning cuppa and the company cars – they only buy fuel-efficient low-CO2 diesel vehicles. The 160 or so employees are of course encouraged to turn out the lights, but also to share their car journeys travelling to work. At the end of the year the workers with the most logged travel share a pot of money with a charity of their choice. In 2011, a total of 2,556 car shares took place, saving 13,190 miles, with a donation to a local cancer charity. Future plans include looking at LED lighting, rainwater collection, solar power, and electric vehicles.