Plymold’s Sustainability Efforts

April 14, 2022
Posted in : News

Sustainability is an important part of our business culture at Plymold. Our efforts are focused on three primary areas:

  • Minimizing our environmental impact
  • Demonstrating corporate and social responsibility
  • Operating our business in an economically sustainable manner

Below are examples of our sustainability efforts to date.

We have incorporated, as a general practice, the use of video conferencing technology to minimize the amount of travel.

Our innovation and product development process incorporates a component to identify sustainability concerns. This begins with the initial “market or customer” requirements and then moves into the actual functional requirements for the end product. We also evaluate all raw materials, local sourcing opportunities, corporate and social responsibility of suppliers, identifying opportunities in the actual manufacturing processes, and maximizing product durability to minimize waste.

We practice Lean Manufacturing and business methods in our continuous improvement journey. We look for recycled content, environmentally sound raw materials, and a current focus is reducing our carbon footprint.

Resulting from our Lean Manufacturing roots, supply chains are evaluated continuously for inefficiencies in cost, delivery, sourcing, and quality. We work diligently to partner with our suppliers which drives a relationship based on delivering the right solutions at the right time.

We utilize regulatory notification services and stay connected to federal and state regulatory agencies, so we stay current with national and international compliance requirements. The State of Minnesota periodically audits our operations for emissions and energy use.

We strive to recycle waste from our manufacturing process whenever possible. Below are our manufacturing waste streams:

  • Wood – recycle or fuel for steam boiler
  • Aluminum – recycle
  • Steel – recycle
  • Cardboard – recycle
  • Paper – recycle
  • Paint – reclaimed
  • Chemicals – reclaimed

We use scrap wood to augment the heating of our manufacturing facility.

We are in continuous improvement mode with our packaging suppliers to limit the packaging while preventing shipping damage.

We are working on an initiative to go paperless.

The lighting in our manufacturing facilities is undergoing a conversion to LED lighting.

We manufacture our products with wood materials from managed forests and suppliers that are FSC certified.

We use materials made with recycled content and post-consumer recycled material in our products. Below are the different components and the recycled content:

  • All corrugated products; cardboard, slip sheets, cartons: 45% post-consumer recycled material
  • Stretch wrap: >25% recycled material
  • Pallets: 75% post-consumer recycled material
  • Wood panel products (core for waste units, tables): 100% recycled content
  • Liner bins (all waste receptacles): 100% post-consumer recycled content
  • Wood: Recycled for pallets or used to heat the building
  • Waste Oil: Recycled with local recycling center

We are proud of our sustainability efforts and will continue to work to find more ways to take care of our planet.