OMNI Systems, the largest privately held label converter in the US, is touting the benefits of collaborative sustainability. The Ohio-headquartered company has made the business case for collaborative sustainability investment vs. mandate-and-absorb models. This philosophy has led to significant benefits for both OMNI and its customers.

Recently, in a move that illustrates the power of going green, one of OMNI’s largest customers offered to split sustainability costs 50/50. The endeavor came in the form of EcoVadis certification.

“They made it very clear from the beginning that environmental stewardship was a priority, and compliance with regulatory benchmarks for carbon footprint reduction and net zero commitments was mission critical,” explains Mike Murton, president, OMNI Systems. “Looking for a third-party evaluation of its supply chain, the customer turned to EcoVadis, an assessment program to evaluate sustainability management systems. It was such a priority that they were willing to share the costs associated with our participation in the initial third-party survey and the ongoing score improvements, easing our decision to invest in this process.

The cost-sharing arrangement has served as a strategic win for both sides. It proved advantageous for OMNI because of the cost-effectiveness. Meanwhile, the customer has control over the services used.

“It also gave us an opportunity to understand the strength of our sustainability efforts and find opportunities for continual improvement on our journey to achieve net zero carbon footprint goals, which provides value to other customers,” notes Murton. “It all comes back to meeting our customers where they are. Tailoring our approach to a customer’s sustainability goals ultimately created value on both sides.

“Doing the right thing by your company, customers, and the environment will always lead to good results,” he adds. “The best way to do that is through transparency and collaboration.”

Since launching its scrap waste diversion automation and energy conversion initiative, OMNI has seen significant increases in machine uptime and production efficiency, not to mention sparing landfills the 900 tons of scrap waste annually. This has saved the converter nearly $500,000 in costs.

“If suppliers, manufacturers, and customers are all part of the conversation – sharing insights, co-investing in solutions and operating transparently – sustainability becomes scalable across the board,” comments Murton. “Imagine what could be achieved if this approach were adopted across the industry?”

Sound infrastructure

As a large label converter with numerous operations, a sound, secure supply chain is imperative. OMNI has made several technological investments in recent years to make the company wider and faster, which helps it nurture a comprehensive labeling ecosystem that protects its customers’ businesses. Therefore, OMNI can deliver readiness and predictability with zero-disruption reliability.

“Our infrastructure alone speaks to all aspects of that ecosystem,” says Murton. “Instead of each facility operating in a silo, we bake multi-facility redundancy into our operating model. All four of our locations (Cleveland, Cincinnati, Kansas City, and St. Louis) operate holistically – 24 hours a day, five days a week – with AI incorporated into real-time performance monitoring, and ERP-driven automation to ensure we produce at the scale and speed our enterprise customers require.”

Additionally, 95% of OMNI’s raw materials are domestically sourced. “In times of industry port strikes, tariffs, or international conflicts that can disrupt global shipments, we can always lean on the strong responsiveness of our domestic suppliers, which allows us to maintain flexible inventory programs to deliver the consistent quality and exceptional service we promise,” adds Murton. “For the small percentage of our business that relies on international suppliers, we also have contingency plans in place to shift those needs to domestic suppliers should the need arise.”

Prioritizing collaboration

As has been the case with OMNI’s sustainability efforts, collaboration throughout the supply chain has generated success. “OMNI isn’t afraid to bring our suppliers into meetings with our customers, which is rare in our industry,” remarks Murton. “As valued partners to OMNI, our suppliers should hear directly from our customers about their focus areas and pain points in sustainability. This only enhances their ability to provide supplemental eco-friendly material expertise and real-time flexibility.

“Without collaboration, you also risk playing the ‘telephone game,’” he continues. “One critical part of the conversation could be missed, or you don’t hear one inflection in a certain area that points to a customer’s passion or interest around sustainability. Rather than serving as a go-between, OMNI facilitates direct dialogue between customers and suppliers – creating fluid, transparent communication that benefits everyone.”

Sustainability also serves as a core value for OMNI. In addition to its award-winning recognition for scrap waste reduction, the company has experienced measurable progress under EcoVadis – which has become another benchmark of environmental stewardship.

“This globally recognized rating for ESG compliance and ethical performance is a critical tool for improving our own carbon management while giving us a competitive edge in large enterprise markets where sustainability is non-negotiable,” states Murton.

OMNI has completed the assessment two years in a row, achieving a 20% improvement in results year over year. “Our commitment also prompted investments in additional software to measure carbon emissions across our entire enterprise system, which will enable us to offer customers product options based on carbon impact, as well,” explains Murton. “Additionally, our strong supplier relationships help drive innovations in recyclable products. Since this is now a must-have for much of our customer base, we can tweak and tailor our adhesives and face sheets to complement our products better.”