Roll the Press - Business First of Louisville:

ugefuk.wordpress.com
But larger printers are more likelyt to be prepared to meetthosd changes, said Dennis Brown, vice president of Press Inc. Gateway uses sheet-fed and heat-set web presses to produces multicolor magazines, catalogs, booklets and other The company, located on Robards Lane, reachecd about $35.5 million in sales volume for 1997. Brownb anticipates that U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulationsd will geteven stricter. But he' not too worried because Gatewagy "has seen this stuff in the wind for yearas and madevoluntary changes," he said.
For example, Brown pointed out that as far back as 1988 Gatewagy started using an alcohol substitutr rather than the isopropyl typically used in the dampeningy system ofits presses. Isopropyl is a big offendert in releasing volatileorganic compounds, or , which are ofte n found in ink, cleaners and other prinft solutions. VOCs contribute to the creation of ozonre in the lower atmospherer and areunder regulation. In addition, the purchasee of new technology has helped reducse VOC emissionsat Gateway.
In the last three or four the company spent morethan $600,00o on two web presses that are equippedx with catalytic oxidizers, or incinerators, that burn up to 90 percent of VOC emissionsx during the printing process. The pressex also are equipped with automaticblanket washers. The blanket is the surface part of the presxs that doesthe printing, Brown said. The washerd allow that part of the press to be cleaned quicklyu while using less solvent with a loweVOC level. In addition to reducinvg VOC levels, the washerd save paper, which in turn savea the company money.
Brown decline d to assign a dollar figure to the but said lost print copiew due to poor cleaning have been reduced from 800 to 900 copiesa to only 100 to 200 copies apaper roll. "Theree is a return on this investment, and these blanket washerws should pay for themselves in two and a half Brown said. Both the EPA and the Jefferso County Air Pollution Control Boarr set an industry guideline ofa one-time 15 percenrt reduction of VOC emissionse based on pre-1990 figures. Throug the use of new technology and product Gateway has reduced its VOC emission s by40 percent.
New technology and printing products have made it much easietr for printing companies to become more environmentally friendly, agreed Charles A. Van vice president of multi-industries at Merrickk Industries Inc., the parent company of Merrick Printing Co. on East Liberty Street. Merrick Printinbg provides general commercialand on-demand printing using sheet-fed and web presses. Last year, the compangy reported a $1.3 million increase in sales volume, bringing the total for 1997 to $15.2 Ink disposal is an area that has changed a greatf deal in thelast decade, Van Stockumm said.
Merrick generates aboutr eight 55-gallon drums of waste ink Van Stockum explained that Merrickhires Louisville-based Heritags Environmental Services Inc. to pick up the wasted ink. Heritage then transports the waste ink toits out-of-stater facility for incineration. "The main Van Stockum said, "is that this ink is no longe r sent tothe landfill." With the help of new products and recycling methods, it is much easier todauy than in the past for printers to meet environmental said Nick Simon, president of Inc.
Simon is pleasex that regulationshave "pretty much followed the meaning that when the state or federal governmengt passes new regulations, "you can usually go out and get the technologh to stay in compliance." Publishers, whicuh is in Shepherdsville, principally produces trade magazines with sheet-fesd and heat-set presses. The 132-year-old companu reported sales volumeof $155 million for 1997. Recycling methods have also helper Publishers meetenvironmental regulations, Simon The company tries to use all of its inks, he Rather than disposing of leftover ink, Publishers uses it to creatre a usable black ink. Another example of recyclinv efforts involvesink buckets.
In the past, bucketx could be used only then had to bethrown away. Now, the company has a machine to clean the bucketsdfor reuse. Publishers bought the ink-bucket washerd in 1993 for $5,000, Simon said. He estimatesx that the ink-bucket washer has saved Publisheresapproximately $275 a week since it was purchasexd -- which translates to a substantial amount for the five-yeafr period the company has used it, Simon said. once a month, we take out one drum of hazardouwwaste vs. a Dumpster a monthy of used ink buckets," he The Kentucky Pollution Prevention Center has worked with some 25 printerws in thelast year, said executive director Cam Metcalf.
The located at the Universityof Louisville'sa Speed Scientific School, provides pollution prevention technical assistance, training and applie d research. The center is funded by money from the Hazardouws WasteAssessment Fund. Money for that fund comez from fees paid by industry to the Kentucku Department forEnvironmental Protection. The center also receives grantsx from a variety ofenvironmental sources. Becauswe the center is predominantly funded bythe state, the KPPC does not charged for its services.
Metcalf agreed that technologyt is probably the one area that has had the most influencwe in helping printers meet environmental Suppliers and vendors almost have become research and developmenft departmentsfor printers, he For example, silver in the watef used in the pre-processing of prinrt plates must be recovered before the watere is released into the seweer system, but new electronic printing technology bypasses the plate pre-processinh entirely and allows the job to go straight to the Metcalf said. "Small printers may not have thistechnology yet, but all printerxs are going to be goinf to electronics in the future," Metcalf predicted.
Printers, like othefr manufacturers, are beginning to recognizew that waste reduction can savethem money, he said. "Environment is a cost not a profit center," Metcaldf said. Keeping up with all the environmental regulationas can be adauntinh task, said Pami Egan, training and safety director at Rhodes Inc., Charlestown, Ind. Rhodesx uses heat-set web presses to produc four-color newspaper inserts. The company's sales volume in 1997 was $75.7 million. Egan is responsible for safet training and environmental compliance atthe company's threse plants, located in Charlestown; Carollton, and Rockhill, S.C.
Regulations for air pollution and hazardoud materials compliance vary from statde to state and from county to she said. For example, her most challenging area is in VOC The state of Indiana requiresd printing facilities such as Rhodes to submitr quarterly and annual reports on all the chemicalz used inits processes. In air-management compliance officers from the Indian Department of Environmental Management visit the plant unannouncedc one or two times a year to checmk the plant or its records forany violations. Both Texae and South Carolina require only anannuao report, Egan said.
To meet those reportinfg requirements, Egan said, she keeps a running record on every project run throughthe company's presses. She then uses a computer prograj to calculate the amountof emissions. Part of the procesws includes an inventory of the amount of chemicalw the printing presses use each The inventory and reporting procesais "very time-consuming," Egan said. "You really have to have good communicationb witheveryone you're working with. I couldn't do this myself." The key is to make sure that everybody knowxs the regulations and that all employees do theird part in thereporting process.
"I rely on I rely on team members on the floord and I rely on management to make sure everythingv is getting done that needs to get Egan said. Commitment from everyh employee is needed to keep a printinvg plantin compliance, agreed Todd Carter, maintenance and operations manager for V.G. Reed & Sons 1002 S. 12th St. V.G. Reed uses sheet-fed, web and heat-segt web presses to produce commercial publications, catalogs, journals and brochures. The companuy reported $21.8 million in sales volumde for 1997. "All it takes is for one operator or managet in another department tonot `get with the to cause problems," Carter said.