| ADDING VALUE THROUGH WASTE TO
LANDFILL REDUCTION AT NEENAH |
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Business
Group: Packaging
Region: North America |
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In 2004, the Food Americas flexible
plastic packaging plant in Neenah, Wisconsin, U.S.,
raised the bar on its waste management performance in
order to further reduce its solid waste footprint. Despite
steady improvements, the plant's monthly landfill costs
remained too high and recyclable material was still
ending up in landfill sites. With a recycled material
rate of 94.6% and recycling revenue of $900,000 in 2003,
Neenah set even more ambitious key performance indicators
for 2004, including a 95.1% recycled material rate.
A thorough analysis of landfill-bound material enabled
Neenah's recycling team to partner with the Material
Handling, Quality Assurance and Film departments to
identify additional recycling opportunities. The team
also looked at eliminating errors in handling, sorting
and labelling waste materials. At the same time, vendor-related
inadequacies were addressed. Today, new vendor bids
are solicited every six months to accommodate frequent
price increases related to commodity values.
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Neenah's 240 employees received training on the importance
of the recycling program, proper handling of waste material
to maximize recycling, as well as their individual roles and
responsibilities. The plant monitors the program's progress
and records each department's waste on a monthly basis. This
ensures compliance and identifies ways to continually improve.
Non-compliance issues are brought to the attention of department
managers and area employees by the environmental team. Retraining
is provided where necessary and awareness is maintained through
shift change huddles. To sustain compliance, waste management
training is now routine for new employees and in all annual
refresher programs.
Thanks to this concerted effort, the Neenah plant exceeded
its 2004 goals by a significant margin, posting a 96.8% recycling
rate and $1.5 million in recycling revenue. This constitutes
the highest recycling rate of any Food Americas plant and
the sector's highest income from recycling. This important
program benefits the environment, the local community as well
as the plant's financial performance and culture.
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