Poly-Version Takes Brand Assurance to a New Level, Pt. 2

PART 2

Conserving Natural Resources

Helping our customers preserve the integrity of their brands means operating in a responsible, community-minded way. That’s why Poly-Version uses soy-based inks and 100 percent recycled paper.

Paper accounts for approximately half of our products’ overall environmental impact. To minimize this impact, we use recycled paper, which requires far less energy, water and chemicals to produce than paper made from trees. We found a 100 percent recycled sheet—made by FutureMark Paper Group in Manistique, Michigan—that meets our hair care customers’ technical specifications for paper while going above and beyond their environmental specifications. FutureMark’s 100 percent recycled sheet produces images that are sharp and bright, runs smoothly on our presses, folds crisply and holds a tight fold over time. While other types of paper could fulfill our technical requirements, FutureMark paper also delivers remarkable environmental benefits. According to the Environmental Paper Network’s Paper Calculator, Poly-Version saves approximately 13,500 trees, 3.5 million gallons of water and enough energy to power 160 American homes each year by printing on FutureMark 100 percent recycled paper instead of a non-recycled sheet. Multiply these annual savings by the 20+ years we have been using this same recycled paper and the conservation benefits are significant.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

In addition to using eco-friendly paper and inks, we have also implemented an aggressive “reduce, reuse, recycle” program. For example, rather than using individual cardboard lids for our product boxes, we designed a large lid that covers all boxes on each layer of the shipping pallet simultaneously. Poly-Version’s lids help stabilize products on the pallet and also reduce the amount of cardboard used in our packaging.

Two years ago, Poly-Version added Eyeglass Arm Protectors to its innovations and patents. These are protective sleeves that consumers can slip over the arms of their eyeglasses to protect them from hair dye. Poly-Version’s eyeglass arm protectors are laminated to instruction sheets alongside the plastic gloves, and they’re made from what would otherwise have been scrap plastic. Our eyeglass arm protectors put more of the plastic we buy to productive use, and it provides our hair care customers with a new amenity to offer consumers—64 percent of whom wear glasses, according to the Vision Council of America.