The 9th annual TLMI Environmental Leadership Awards were presented this month to Avery Dennison and to Label World, a converter in Rochester, NY, USA. “Without a doubt, this activity supports the TLMI position on sustainability. We have begun and will continue to change the culture of our industry,” said Calvin Frost, chairman of the institute’s Environmental Committee.

The judges, he said, consider the following when evaluating award candidates: waste reduction, recycling projects, energy recovery, clean technology, participation in the LIFE certification program, and the education of associates, vendors and customers on sustainable procedures.

The Environmental Leadership Award for Innovative Technologies was presented to Avery Dennison for its work on a wide range of programs. The company created an internal environmental process – Enterprise Lean Sigma – to reduce waste, energy, material, and time usage which increased productivity, quality, and profit. It developed energy kaizens, reduced fuel consumption, and substantially reduced greenhouse gas emissions. It focused on using lighter and thinner materials and designed a variety of products that helped reduce waste and enable recycling. Avery Dennison, said Frost, “not only has embraced the LIFE certification standard internally, they have also promoted the benefits of the standard to other non-TLMI organizations.”

The second award, for process improvement in environmental leadership, was presented to Label World, “a company that has made sustainability a core element of its business strategy,” Frost said. “It has used this strategy to maintain and grow its customer base. It has used this same strategy to build cross-functional teams internally that meet regularly to identify opportunities, trade metrics, and develop actions. Label World’s new initiatives include the promotion and use of unbleached kraft liners to promote ease of recyclability, improved office area lighting, development of a plate recycling scheme, the use of green cleaning supplies, and support of using recycle compatible adhesives. This company continues to lead in every aspect of sustainability.”

John McDermott, president of Label World, is the architect of the LIFE (Label Initiative for the Environment) certification standard.