piątek, 11 marca 2016

Features Of Sustainable Digital Printing

By Richard Patterson


Due to sustained campaigns against global warming, many industries are under immense pressure to change the methods that they have used in their operations for decades. The printing industry is one of those that have been identified as contributing to carbon emissions at a number of stages. To conform to the new order of things, many are becoming more innovative which is helping conserve the environment and cut down costs. Sustainable digital printing can be achieved on a number of ways.

An area in which major changes are being made is the type of inks that are used in the process. The inks that have been used traditionally are known to result in byproducts known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are harmful to the environment. This occurs when the chemical that are found in these inks react with nitrogen oxide (in the atmosphere) in the presence of sunlight. New types of ink do not have these compounds.

The type of paper that is used also determines whether the process is eco friendly or not. Virgin paper is obtained directly from trees and is therefore a direct contributor of increased deforestation rates. Recycled, paper on the other hand, is derived from waste paper. Increased use of recycled paper helps in the conservation of one of our most valued natural resources that is forests. During processing, recycled paper produces less waste.

One area that is causing a lot of wastage is proof reading of manuscripts. In the modern era, it does not make any sense why anyone would invest so much in paper that may eventually end up as waste. Firms that have embraced modern communication techniques are realizing huge savings. The email, for instance, has made it possible to make changes on manuscripts easily without necessarily using paper.

The other raw materials can be similarly recycled or reused at various stages. Water is one of the inputs that are easiest to reuse. It has been established that with the right measures in place, one can recycle at least 65% of the water that is used. This is one way in which operation costs can be markedly reduced. The other raw materials that have been successfully recycled or reused include ink, aluminum plates and waste paper.

Energy efficiency should be a priority in a printing firm. Fossil fuels take a big part of the blame for global warming and this is the reason as to why there is a general trend to move away from these sources of energy in favor of more renewable sources. Wind and solar energy are, in particular, getting a very positive reception. When replacing old equipment, acquire new ones that will give you higher input for each kilowatt of electricity that you use.

These changes have also been successfully replicated in digital fabric printing. Perhaps one of the major differences that exists is the pretreatment stage where urea based compounds are used in fabric printing. These compounds which are known to release carbon dioxide as a byproduct are now being replaced by a special type of foam.

Adopting green based technologies in digital printing has numerous benefits to all that are involved. The savings that are made in the printing process are likely to be passed on to the writer as well as the consumer. Of greater significance, however, is the fact that everyone involved helps conserve the environment.




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