INDA World of Wipes Symposium: Chicago - June 21st -23rd 2010

Market Statistics

Rory Holmes, INDA’s President provided the latest statistics.  Of the 1.45 million tonne US nonwoven market, wipes now had 13%, up from 8% in 1997.  Unlike wipes in the EU, the US consumption continued to grow with total retail sales reaching $5.14 billion in 2009,  and expected to reach $5.8 billion in 2013, with 75% of this being consumer and 25% industrial.  Within the consumer category, average annual growth since 2000 had been 10%, most of this coming from household wipes and personal care wipes; least from baby wipes. 

The baby wipes share of the consumer category had dropped from 88% in 1997 to 29% in 2009; Household growing from 4% to 45% and Personal Care from 8% to 26% over the same period.  By tonnage however the lower cost baby wipes still held over 50% of the production.  By volume in 2009, Private Label baby wipes had 39%, Huggies 27% and Pampers 19% with small brands at 15%. 

For the Household category, Swiffer led with 30%, Chlorox Spinlace (25%), PL (21%), Small Brands (17%) and Pledge (7%).  The last decade’s growth had been driven by the development of electrostatic wipes, disinfecting wipes, furniture polishes and automotive interior wipes.

In Personal Care, K-C’s Cottonelle led with 44% share of volume, while PL had 26%, Playtex had 12%, P&G had 11%, and Small Brands had 7%.  The last decade had seen new products in Femcare (Always and Fresh’n up), Facial care ( Biore, Oil of Olay, Neutrogena and Dove), and wet toilet tissue (Cottonelle, Charmin, Wet-Ones and Fresh’n up).

Spunlaced nonwoven was the leading substrate production technology in 2009 with 38% of the 238,000 tonne total (which included 18% of double recrepe tissue which is not a nonwoven).  Air laid pulp wipes accounted for 27%, Coform and wet laid for 12%, and spunlaid, card-thermal and card-resinbond for the remaining 4%.

$2.5 billion of nonwovens, rags and reusables were sold into the industrial and institutional wipes sector, Industrials wipes, rags and reusables accounting for 63% , Medical 16%, Food Service 15% and Speciality 6%.  The EPA still requires used nonwoven industrial wipes to be disposed of in the hazardous waste stream while the laundries that wash the reusable rags incur no penalty.  Studies are now showing nonwovens are more environmentally sound than rags and the EPA are being lobbied to pass a new rule opening up the market to nonwovens.

With regard to flushable wipes, the California Bill AB2256 will ban flushable wipes if passed.

  It has been passed in the Assembly but it now looks as if the Senate will turn it down.  The Govenor has to approve or veto it by the end of August.  A recent analysis of the build-up on sewer screens by UC Berkley has shown that 46% of the problem is caused by paper towels, 18% by personal care wet-wipes (non-flushable), 15% by household wipes, 10% by femcare and 7% by flushable products.

Asked if the right industrial nonwovens were available to replace laundered rags, Dr Holmes said they were, and confirmed that the main hurdle to their adoption was the doubling of system cost caused by mandatory hazardous waste disposal.

WOW Innovation Awards

There were short presentations from each of the finalists:

Brad Reynolds of Kimberly Clark Professional introduced Kimtech® One Step Germicidal Wipes as the first product to have MRSA and C. difficile kill-claims.  Against a background of 100,000 deaths/year from hospital acquired infections in the USA, 28,000 being killed by C. difficile this wipe was said to meet the CDC’s guidelines for an ideal disinfectant for use in healthcare facilities.  Claims were as follows:

• Economical (c.f other wipes) one-step single-use product which does not smell of chlorine.
• Bactericidal and virucidal within 30 seconds, tuberculocidal and fungicidal in 1 minute, and sporicidal in 6 minutes.
• Active in 5% soil or 50% whole blood
• Mild dermal, inhalation and oral toxicity, but severe eye irritant
• 12 month shelf life at temperatures between freezing and 45^oC
• Actives decompose into water, oxygen and acetic acid.
• Has EPA registration for use against 35 organisms

The 8” by 12” wipes are delivered in a large canister with a narrow neck to allow easily carrying in one hand and a roomy cap to cover and keep the tail of the next wipe moist.  The actives are 4.4% peroxide, 0.23% peracetic acid, 4.9% acetic acid mixed with proprietary corrosion inhibitor, film former and fragrance (to kill the vinegar smell).  The peracetic acid breaks into the pathogen allowing peroxide into the cell to damage the internals.  The nonwoven was a 100% PP meltblown: Coform would not survive the chemistry.  In response to questions, the wipe was not for consumer use, and the surface did stay wet long enough to kill C.diff.

Ruth Levy of Nice-Pak introduced Eco-Pak, essentially a household-wipe canister-replacement made as a stand-up flow-pack from a roll of film. It’s unique features were environmental: 

• one small roll of film can replace 2 pallets of empty canisters and save 83% of the packaging required to deliver the wet-wipe to the consumer. 
• The filled Eco-Paks can stand on pallets where their rectangular section allows 87% more per pallet.
• Savings in transportation are equivalent to 1856 barrels of oil per million canisters.
• Like most flow-packs the Stay-Moist lid, now on the side of the pack because it’s designed to stand on an end, is ready-threaded with the first wipe and the pack is easy to carry and use with one hand.

Cara Bondi of Seventh Generation introduced Seventh Generation Disinfecting Wipes which kill 99.99% of household germs and provide odor control with a natural thyme-based disinfectant which had been developed by Clean Well.  This is in EPA category IV and does not require a cautionary statement on the front panel.  The 7” by 8” wipes are made from  a 50gsm spunlaced blend of TCF rayon and polyester.

Jim Esposito of RPM introduced Poly Wipes™, a product for removing uncured and partly cured sealants and adhesives such as epoxies, urethanes, polysulphides and silicones. It uses a nonwoven wipe impregnated with a non-toxic water-based solution.  Unlike the competition which uses solvents such as IPA, they are non-flam, odor-free, biodegradable and will not cause dry-skin.  They are intended for use in Aviation, Marine, Construction (double glazing etc), and Adhesive Industries, and in fact in any machine shop where oil and grease contamination had to be removed from finished parts.

The winner, with over 50% of the votes was Eco-Pak.

Personal Care Ingredients

Sam Naggiar of Cognis Corporation focussed on the liquids, from simple lotions to complex emulsions, which are now used to wet the wipe.  In addition to aqua, the key ingredients are emulsifiers, surfactants, humectants, emollients, preservatives, fragrances and a wide range of additives.  At the very least, the wet-wipe must be safe, feel nice, smell nice, be well preserved and deliver the chosen active ingredients in the required quantity.  A typical ingredient list would include:

• 3-20% of emollient oil
• A primary emulsifier at 5-20% of the oil content
• A secondary emulsifier at 1.5-5%
• Up to 10% of special additives (e.g. lipids, vegetable proteins, cationics, vitamins, “botanicals” and polymers for good “skin feel”.)
• 0.05 – 1% of Fragrance
• 0.05 – 1% of Preservative

A basic oil-water emulsion can be obtained as a ready-made concentrate which is easily diluted to give a lotion which exhibits good stability, good wicking on all fabrics at high impregnation speeds, low foam, good slip-stick in cutting and packing and great end-product stability.  If cleansing is the main function, co-surfactants, moisturisers and skin conditioners can be added.

Ingredients made from eco-friendly “back to nature” raw-materials are increasingly required.  Alkyl polyglucosides from corn and coconut oil provide fully biodegradable and renewable surface actives and are yielding non-ionic emulsions compatible with anionics, amphoterics or cationics.

Sensorial Polymers are providing new standards of softness and a premium skin feel while stabilising and reducing settlement of the lotion.  They don’t need neutralising, are processable cold and thicken efficiently over a wide pH range.  Products mentioned included sodium polyacrylate,  polyquaternium 37,  and guar hydroxypropyltriammonium chloride.

Green Home-Care Wipes

Mike Coxey, also of Cognis Corporation expected the home-care wipes market to grow by 29% in constant value terms between 2008 and 2013.  This market would increasingly require natural products designed to meet the demand for greener, healthier products.  Environmental or natural claims were to be found on 1/3^rd of all household wipe launches since the end of 2008:

• BabyGanics”Grime Fighter”  wipes from Healthy Home Products claims to “hunt dirt where babies live” and  be Nontoxic, Fragrance-free, Biodegradable, People- and Earth- friendly.  It uses plant-based cleaning agents and surfactants, filtered water with a conditioning agent, and less than 0.05% preservative.
• Meyer’s Clean Day Baby from The Caldrea Company claims biodegradability due to the use of plant-based ingredients and organic essential oils.  It features an aromatherapeutic “Baby Blossom” scent which has not been tested on animals. Baking soda, orange-oil, lemon-oil and honeysuckle fragrance are mentioned.
• Green Works biodegradable wipes from Chlorox are made with 99% natural non-animal tested, plant-based ingredients containing no phosphorus or bleach.  They do contain ethanol, citric acid, IPA, preservatives and a silicone emulsion.
• Method from Method Products is made from 100% natural fibre and is therefore compostable and recyclable.  It contains alcohol, washing soda, potassium hydroxide and preservative among the usual ingredients.
• Dapple Toy Cleaners  from Ruby Rose are also biodegradable and use natural-based ingredients.  It is free of phthalates, parabens, dioxanes, SLES(?) and dyes.  It does contain baking soda “from natural ores” and alcohol.
• Seventh Generation from Seventh Generation kills 99.9% of household germs especially influenza A, salmonella enteric and pseudomonas aeruginosa. It is made from “botanically-pure plant extracts” with ingredients including copper sulphate pentahydrate.  The substrate is polyester/rayon.
• Purex 3 in 1 Laundry Sheets  from Henkel uses detergent, softeners and antistat on one powerful sheet which can be used in the washer and transferred to the dryer.  No green claims were mentioned.

Alkyl polyglucosides were increasingly used for their high performance and natural origins.  Any ethoxylated compounds would fail the dioxane-free tests.

With regard to certification of claims the US EPA’s Design for Environment scheme evaluates materials for toxicity and biodegradability, and allows hydrogen peroxide, citric acid and lactic acid as antimicrobials.  The Natural Products Association were also evaluating and certifying natural content.  Cleangredients® was an online resource with information on ingredients  for anyone wishing to make, or check a green claim.

Antimicrobial Actives

Michael Curtis of Mason Chemicals mentioned the confusion that arises when consumers think overuse of antimicrobials (germicides) and antibiotics are equally likely to result in resistant microorganisms .  Organisms are much less likely to develop resistance to germicides, and in fact Mr Curtis was unaware of any examples where acquired resistance to a germicide had been described in the literature.  Disinfectants are defined as germicides for use on the inanimate environment while antiseptics are germicides used on skin or mucous membranes.  Neither lead to resistant strains and in fact both are effective against bacteria that have already developed resistance to antibiotics.  Strong evidence of their efficacy in improving human health by improving hand hygiene and environmental cleanness exists from many sources, and today there are about 5000 germicides (antimicrobials) registered with the EPA.  60% of these are for infection control in hospitals and other health-care environments. 

If you wish to claim “kills germs” then your product must be registered, but if you only claim cleanliness, registration is unnecessary.  “Sterilizes” implies sporicidal capability and this requires the strongest chemicals.  “Disinfects” implies inactivation of viruses, bacteria and fungus but not spores and these are further divided into Tuberculocidal, Hospital, and General disinfectants in decreasing order of potency.  “Sanitizes” implies reduction rather than elimination of microbes in the inanimate environment to levels considered safe in public health regulations.  “Antiseptics” on the other hand inhibit microbe growth on living tissue and are therefore considered drugs to be regulated by the FDA.

Antimicrobial wipes are harder to register than liquids alone.  Wipe testing for registration is generally 15-20% more expensive than for liquids, the total cost for a product being put at $40,000 to $250,000, the cost being higher the more organisms claimed, virucidal claims being the most costly to verify. 

The National Pesticide Information Resource Service (NPIRS) provides a searchable database which allows developers to check what others are doing and what materials are already on the market.  This shows 64% of disinfectants are based on quats whereas only 35% of sporicides use quats alone – the rest using quat/alcohol blends, peroxides, hypochlorite or phenolics.  Hypochlorites were regarded worldwide as the most effective especially when stabilised by high pH in concentrations of 0.1 to 1%.  Irritation was an issue because the concentration required to kill microbes was also the concentration at which irritation could occur.

Asked about the new EPA test for wipes, where 1 disposable wipe had to clean 10 contaminated slides, Mr Curtis said he was not aware of any product being approved yet, and admitted that this was a higher hurdle to registration than used in the past.

Odor Control Technology

Tom Daly of Belle-Aire Fragrances defined Odor Elimination as any system or chemical that can interfere with the normal processes of perception and reaction to odors.  In the 15^th century leather gloves were perfumed to mask the offensive leather odor.  In the 1950’s, metazine and neutral gamma were popular malodor maskers but now the use of fragrances is declining and the focus is on odor elimination as exemplified by P&G’s Febreze™, “Mr Clean with Febreze™” and many other new products combining odor neutralisers within common cleaners.

Mechanisms of odor elimination include:-

• Physical odor elimination: Using masks, filters or manually removing the odor source.
• Odor saturation: Overpowering the smell with a specific chemical e.g. formaldehyde
• Reodorization: Combining the smell with a counter-odor to create a more pleasant smell
• Odor Masking: Most air-fresheners use this mechanism – overpowering the smell with perfume
• Odor absorbing or adsorbing: Using baking soda, zeolite or active carbon.
• Oxidation/reduction of odor:  using chlorine or peroxide bleach
• Biodegradation of odor:  Use of antimicrobials to kill the bacteria causing the odor
• Complexing of odor:  Zinc salts such as Grillocin or Belle-Aire’s patent-pending odor modifier complex (OMC)
• Encapsulation of odor:  P&G’s cyclodextrin or Belle-Aire’s Ordenone

Clearly the key to odor elimination is to make contact between the malodor and its eliminator and here wet-wipes provide the perfect carrier.  So for the future, Mr Daly saw great potential for sales of odor eliminators to the wet-wipe industry.

Innovation in Packaging

Tarry Zielinski of Guy & O’Neill Inc. compared canisters with flat-packs and other possibilities.  Consumers like products that look good and can be left out during use, ideally in packs which co-ordinate with the decor in the rooms in which they are kept.  They prefer the next wipe to pop up automatically and like 1-touch or touchless dispensers.  They also like packs made from sustainable materials. 

Existing canisters hold many wipes and keep them moist for longer.  They are easily stored and look good but suffer from roping, are not easy to operate with one hand, and are not yet available with sustainable packs (now mainly PP or PE-based).  Improvements involving PLA and PCR (Post consumer recycled waste) plastic packs, flexible film canisters  and better closures to prevent roping and improve access in 1-handed operation are underway.

Existing flat-packs are mainly made from inexpensive but non-recyclable multilayer laminates with peel and reseal closures.  They tend to dry out too quickly, are difficult to display at retail and hard to differentiate.  Sustainable or recyclable films are now being used to make stand-up packs with tamper-evident closures allowing a one-hand opening feature.  These allow excellent displays at retail and good graphic design.  A Lysol Save Smart Disinfectant wipe pack was used to illustrate the trend.

Refillable portable packaging for use in cars, purses and travel bags give longer life due to better sealing, and lower costs to refill.  However single wipe sachets offer the ultimate convenience for travelling.

Purex complete 3 in 1

Jeff Michelson and Matthew Petkus of Henkel claimed an 11% share of the $52 billion global laundry care market, behind P&G’s 34% and Unilever’s 18%.  They had identified the macro-trend to all-in-one products which maximised convenience (e.g. Wet-wipes replacing bucket, detergent and mop) and had therefore developed a laundry product which combined detergent, softener and antistat all-in-one dry nonwoven sheet.  The softener and antistat survive through the wash and are heat activated by the dryer.  The advantages of this compact approach over the “separates” were the water-free system which reduces packaging by 62% and transportation CO₂ emissions by 79%.

The development took 4 years and required over 40 staff, 15 from R&D.  150+ washer/dryer tests were made requiring over 2000 washloads.  Numerous patents and disclosures were made along the way as they solved the problems of premature softener removal, interactions between the nonwoven and chemicals, and incomplete use of softener.

The nonwoven has a hairy side and a lofty side and creates an “innovative matrix” which binds the cleaning components.  The moldable detergent is applied to absorbent lofty side while the softener, with its carrier, is applied to the other side.  “The gradient through the cross section of the nonwoven allows for heat activated flow.  As heat is applied the sheet draws softener through to release.” Fragrance development and it’s stability in use was key to marketing success and 3 varieties are now on offer, Spring Oasis, Pure and Clean, and Tropical Escape. Performance tests suggest the sheet is comparable with the leading mid-tier detergent in warm water removal of stains, and better than the leading mid-tier for whiteness maintenance.

The launch used 360^o marketing, listed as TV, Print, Displays, Shopper, Coupons, Samples, News, PR, Viral, Social Networks, and Websites;  the viral approach being to use 100 influential blogging mums to test and discuss the product. 

Asked if the development held any surprises, Mr Petkus commented on the unexpected synergies between the softener and the nonwoven.  Spunbond gave poor release, but needlefelt was good.

Sustainable Packaging

Joe Hotchkiss of Michigan State University School of Packaging said consumers now want sustainable products and all products communicate their values through the packaging.  He defined sustainable packaging as using less material and less non-renewable resources in the containment and distribution of products.  So, once the total packaging weight is reduced to the minimum, and the distribution inefficiencies are eliminated, this implies moving to bio-based polymers and renewable energy.  Polyethylene made from sugar cane via glucose or polypropylene blending with nano-cellulose would be moves in the right direction.

To remove unnecessary packaging a thorough analysis of the contribution of each component is required.  For example point-by-point analysis of PET still water bottles (“is this point important to the structure, if not, reduce its weight”) had resulted in a 50% saving in PET usage.   Life Cycle Analysis should be used to choose materials with the lowest carbon footprint, but in an aside Dr Hotchkiss observed that he had yet to see an LCA which gave a below average score for its subject.  This is because all consultants adjust the boundaries of the study to get the results their clients want.  Another measure was cost of packaging: as a general rule minimising cost should increase sustainability.  The Sustainable Packaging Coalition® was independent and offered guidelines to help developers.  Michigan’s Center for Packaging Innovation and Sustainability will be undertaking research across the supply chain, including a collaboration with the World Wildlife Fund on zero C footprint packaging and the use of biobased additives to dilute fossil plastics. It will also ensure that sustainability is integrated into education with undergraduate courses, internships and the creation of a global network of sustainable packaging organisations.

PLA/PHB Melt Blown Nonwovens

Larry Wadsworth of US Pacific Nonwovens mentioned their recent partnerships with Natureworks Ingeo giving them the exclusive agency for their PLA spunmelt nonwovens in Asia Pacific, and with Biax Fiberfilm for stand-alone MB lines in the region.  The rest of the paper dealt with the recent studies on the degradation of PLA/PHB blend nonwovens made on Biax Fiberfilm’s pilot plant.  The nonwovens were tested before, during and after 12 weeks immersion in clean wipes solution, Chinese river water, Chinese river mud and Chinese compost:

• MD tenacity losses of 54% for 100% PLA and 31% for 85/15 PLA/PHB occurred during 12 weeks in the clean wipe solution.
• MD Tenacity losses of all fabrics ranged from 19-26% after 4 weeks in river water.  The 100% PLA lost 85% of its MD after 12 weeks and the 75/25 PLA/PHB lost 48%.
• The 100% PLA lost 91% of its strength after 4 weeks in river mud and 98% after 12 weeks. 
• The 75/25 blend with PHB lost 75% of its strength after 4 weeks and 83% after 12 weeks.
• After 12 weeks in manure compost all samples had fragmented.

Zemea® Propanediol

Joseph de Salvo of Dupont Tate & Lyle Bioproducts described the fruits of their 12 year development leading to the Nov 2006 start-up of the bio-refinery plant at Loudon TN USA.  The plant now has a capacity for 45,000 tonnes of 1,3 propanediol (Zemea®) made from glucose derived from corn by fermentation with a patented biocatalyst.  “The process is similar to brewing beer”.  It is being promoted as a natural glycol alternative to propylene glycol for organic formulations where reduced skin irritation, enhanced moisturising and improved feel are required. At concentrations up to 75% and pH’s between 4 and 9 Zemea® produced no irritation or sensitisation in human skin patch testing, unlike PG which affected 8% of the 207 trialists at 25% and pH7.

• Zemea® , when used at 5% in a standardised skin-care emulsion was a more efficient moisturiser than propylene- or butyleneglycol according to Corneometer 825 PC measurements of female forearm skin moisture.
• A 20 subject panel compared Zemea®, PG, BG and glycerine in lotions over 4 days in blind and randomised testing.  Zemea® came out best for spreading, non-tackiness, non-filminess, softness, easy absorbtion, comfort, smoothness, and overall pleasantness.  It was rated equal to PG for moisturising and non-greasy.
• Radiocarbon dating (ASTM D6866) shows the Zemea® to be 100% bio-based and is therefore certifiable as such.
• Cradle-Grave LCA shows Zemea® production and use saves 40% non-renewable energy and 40% GHG compared with PG or petrol-based 1,3 PDO.

A 35% capacity expansion is due to come on stream in Q2 2011.  Asked about the use of Zemea® in polymerisation processes, Mr de Salvo said it can and would be used to make polytrimethylene terephthalate (e.g. Dupont’s Sorona®).  However he implied the market for moisturisers was sufficient to justify the Loudon operation.

Design for Environment

Emma Lavoie of the US EPA’s DfE Program reviewed their mission to guide consumers towards safer choices through informed chemical substitution and by labelling safer products as such.  They would also promote best practice to reduce exposure to any hazardous materials, and provide risk management options for the EPA.  They began in 1992 and since 2003 have had a program looking for better flame retardants for furniture and printed circuits, and alternatives to phthalates.  They are related to TOSCA and Pesticide legislation, but are solely advisory.  In general they strive continually to identify safer choices to move down the spectrum from Chemicals of Concern to Sustainable products as new materials become available.  The DfE label is available to products which pass their review system, but the majority of products require some reformulation before the label is granted.

For cleaning products they don’t do any testing and they don’t ask for data.  They do review the ingredient list by function to understand toxicity issues and identify if any greener alternatives are available.  There is a DfE standard for safer cleaning products against which the whole formulation is reviewed. 

Disposable wipes have to be flushable or compostable to get the label.  Compostability must be demonstrated according to ASTM D5338-98, or by certificate of analysis proving the wipe is made of 100% naturally compostable materials.  For flushability the INDA/EDANA guidelines are invoked.

Cleangredients®, an on-line searchable database of green chemistry ingredients has been set up to allow suppliers to showcase safer chemicals for cleaning and to allow formulators to find ingredients quickly.  This was described as a multi-stakeholder development of over 800 organisations using technical committees to define modules for safer ingredients.

DfE  is now starting work on a safer pesticide labelling scheme.

Baby wipe LCA

Louis Chapdelaine of Seventh Generation Inc., with help from Rockline, Jacob Holm and Lenzing, has prepared an LCA of their baby wipes production.  They considered PP tubs versus PET Film refill packs and the use of 100% viscose fibre against a 70/30 PET/CV blend, the lotion being considered as 100% water throughout.  They concluded:

• 100% viscose is the clear winner for reducing energy use and global warming potential. 
• PET/CV is the clear winner for reducing water use.
• “There was no clear winner against the other impact categories” (adiabatic depletion, acidification, eutrophication, fresh water ecotoxicity, human ecotoxicity, marine ecotoxicity, photochemical oxidation and terrestrial ecotoxicity.)
• A non-viscose renewable fibre could have lower impacts than 100% viscose”
• Refill packs were the clear winner over Tubs for reducing energy use and global warming potential, and in fact in every other impact category.

Asked about cotton, Mr Chapdelaine said it was being considered but the true footprint of cotton was yet to be determined.  Asked about flushability, he added that wipes are generally disposed of inside the soiled diaper and so flushability was not an issue for baby-wipes.

Sustainability at PGI

Cliff Bridges, Senior Director of Global Communications for PGI used the National Academy of Science graph which showed use of the planet’s resources overshooting its ability to replenish them in 1987 when the population was about 5 billion to argue the next decade would be critical to the fate of humanity.  Population growth – possibly to 8 billion by 2030 - would be mainly in the poorest countries, and here, despite massive global GDP growth, conditions have not improved.  In fact 2010 was the time to take stock and take action.  Against this background, PGI’s 2009 sustainability report, prepared to a Global Reporting Initiative level B standard showed:

• 11% reduction in average basis weight produced
• 19% reduction in carbon footprint
• 32% reduction in water consumption
• 3% increase in usage of recycled materials
• 5% decrease in generation of solid waste
• Addition of 16 new GRI Indicators for a total of 37
• 25% reduction in lost time injury rate

PGI is now working with INDA to harmonize LCA data collection and reporting.  They are committed to transparency throughout the company and their leadership in openness has established credibility with key potential partners.

Sustainability at Rockline

Craig Roush of Rockline described their goals and achievements:  energy use down 11%, GHG’s down 9%, solid waste down 10% but water use up 15%.  Overall they had reduced their C footprint by 990 tonnes, reduced landfilled waste by 671 tonnes and cut energy use by 220,000 kwh of electricity and 28,000 cu ft gas.  They were now beginning a study of supply chain sustainability with a view to establishing a baseline in 2011 to allow goal-setting for 2012.  Asked how to get started on sustainability measurement, Dr Roush said “talk to Lenzing – they have the gold standard and helped us get started! The EU is clearly ahead of the USA for sustainability, but the USA is now getting the message”.

Calvin Woodings