3 Easy Ways to Create Sustainable Printing Habits in Your Workplace

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There is hardly a person these days that can argue that humans don’t have any significant influence on the planet. It is very clear that our activities are affecting the planet on which we live. Luckily though, you don’t have to kick off your shoes, go live in the woods, and eat acorns for the rest of our life just to make a difference to our planet. There are plenty of things you can do in your everyday life to lighten the load on the planet. Office environments are notoriously big users of energy and resources but there are still things you can do to help.

Office printing practices often suck up a lot of energy, time, and company resources. There are dozens of memos, meeting handouts, reports, and more that are printed and distributed to sometimes hundreds of employees. A single employee can use over 10,000 sheets of paper every year! Here are three easy ways that you can help make your office’s printing practices that much more sustainable:

Using Recycled and Sustainable Paper

Recycled paper is a no brainer. Paper that has been previously used is then broken down and used to create brand new, fresh paper. But did you know there is also sustainable paper? Sustainable paper is paper that is created from trees that have been grown and harvested in a certified sustainable environment. Sustainable forestry allows the collection of timber without clear cutting and deforestation. Instead, forests are managed, just like any other business asset, and are grown and harvested for long term use. Just by using recycled and sustainable paper your office can drastically reduce the number of new timber needed in the supply chain, thus saving forests all over the world!

Moving to Electronic Document Management Systems

Not all documents need to be printed out; in fact, many documents work much better as electronic documents. Things like policy manuals, company documentation, and long reports work much better as electronic documents because they can be searched for keywords. The ability to search a long document and find the information you need means that they are likely to get used a lot more frequently as well! There are lots of options out there for software systems that help with electronic document management, including tasks like organizing, archiving, and more. Many businesses can save significant resources and money by not printing documents that may be more useful as an electronic file.

Using Remanufactured Ink Cartridges

There is a misconception that remanufactured ink cartridges are somehow lower quality than those cartridges purchased from the manufacturer. This is simply not true. Remanufactured cartridges are original manufacturer cartridges that have been used up; they are then sent to a factory where they are thoroughly cleaned, tested, and repaired if necessary, and then they are refilled with fresh ink. Remanufactured ink cartridges save companies money because they cost significantly less than refill cartridges from the manufacturer and they keep thousands of pounds of plastic waste out of landfills each year.

Making some easy changes like these in your own office can not only save your company money, but significantly reduce the draw on resources from our planet. We all live on this earth and we have a responsibility to help it last for many generations!Get monthly discounts and coupons in your email by clicking here