Environmental Innovation Breakfast

Posted on May 8, 2012 by | Leave a comment

In April, we hosted two Environmental Innovation Breakfasts in Vancouver and Victoria. The event featured a keynote presentation from James Tansey, CEO of Offsetters, as well as key business practice examples from Bernard Hellen of Cascades Fine Paper and Hemlock’s own Richard Kouwenhoven.

As a reference for our attendees, and to share the information with those who may not have been able to attend, here are our presenters’ slides. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments.

Leading Approaches to Corporate Social Responsibility by Offsetters (PDF) - James Tansey

Environmental History of Cascades Fine Paper (PDF) – Bernard Hellen

Sustainability at Hemlock (PDF) – Richard Kouwenhoven

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Contest Announcement

Posted on May 4, 2012 by | Leave a comment

We love that we have such a large following on Twitter, and a slowly-but-surely-growing fan base on Facebook. We want to know more about you. I am of the belief that’s what social media is for – to be social!

Every Monday morning, starting May 7th, we are going to ask a question on our Facebook page. By answering, you will be entered to win a personalized prize!

Personalized Prizes

You can choose between a set of personalized memo pads, or a personalized journal! 1 prize given away each week.

The winner will be randomly selected from all of the entries Tuesday morning. It’s really that easy. So make sure you’ve liked us on Facebook so you’ll see the questions each week.

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Environmental Paper Network Power User

Posted on May 1, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Hemlock uses the Environmental Paper Network’s Paper Calculator for many of our daily activities, including generating the numbers for our eco audits and calculating the offsets required for our Zero projects.

It is a wonderful service with many applications for our industry and others. When we were invited to become a Power User, we knew that the membership was a great fit.

What sets the Paper Calculator apart from other applications is that the Environmental Paper Network is a completely non-profit, independent organization. They rely upon donations and memberships, including Power Users and other Member Organizations, to ensure the Paper Calculator continues to operate as a free, transparent and independent resource. Their commitment to promoting resources with the lowest impact on our environment is one that mirrors our own.

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Carbon Footprint Compendium Follow Up: Helpful Questions to Ask

Posted on April 25, 2012 by | Leave a comment

In last week’s post, I shared Magazine Canada’s Carbon Footprint Compendium (PDF). It is a resource of information to help companies assess and understand what is meant by a Carbon Footprint and information, tips and best practices to improve the environmental sustainability of your company.

Included within this was a list of helpful questions Magazines Canada suggests to ask your printer, suppliers and distributors to ensure that your suppliers support your corporate sustainability policies.

I wanted to provide Hemlock’s answers to these questions. As many of them are dependent on the specific type of paper used, which will obviously vary from project to project, we have answered them based on our 33 preferred house stocks. We do have access to thousands of different papers and would be more than happy to provide the answers for any of them upon request. If you would like to know more about any of our answers, feel free to contact either myself directly or our Sustainability Coordinator, Maria.

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Carbon Footprint Compendium by Magazines Canada

Posted on April 18, 2012 by | Leave a comment

At Hemlock, our belief has always been that our paper is our largest opportunity  to limit our environmental impact. We follow this belief throughout our daily practices and encourage our clients to do the same.

Carbon Footprint CompendiumWe were so pleased when Magazines Canada shared with us their Carbon Footprint Compendium (PDF). The Compendium masterfully summarizes what is meant by a “carbon footprint” and how magazines can limit their carbon impact. It goes into detail about what practices contribute to the size of a printer or publisher’s carbon footprint and provides some real world examples of companies that have developed and put into practice environmental policies.

Included within the Compendium is a list of questions that you can ask your printer, suppliers and distributors to learn more about their environmental practices. Stay tuned for Hemlock’s answers to these questions on the blog next week.

I encourage you to download a copy of the Compendium and read it for yourself, as there is a wealth of information within it that I could not summarize here. Here are my take-aways from it:
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Introducing Hemlock Delivers

Posted on April 3, 2012 by | Comments Off

Frank Wolff

Meet Frank, he’s Hemlock’s own driver for lower mainland deliveries and probably the nicest courier you will ever meet.

Starting this week, you may see him around the Metro Vancouver area delivering samples, picking up proofs, and anything else that may be required of an in-house courier (Coffee runs, anyone?).

Frank has been in this role for a couple of months now with a rental vehicle, but this is his first week with our brand new, shiny and white Mercedes Sprinter Van. To welcome the Sprinter to the Hemlock family, we’re running a contest!

That’s right, it’s time to:

Capture the Sprinter from the Printer!

Matthew Maran - Vancouver Island: From Barkley to Clayoquot

Up for grabs is your own copy of Matthew Maran’s Vancouver Island: Barkley to Clayoquot photography book. We have 5 copies to give away. To enter, all you have to do is take a photo of Hemlock’s Sprinter Van and share it with us on Twitter or Facebook, or leave it in a comment here.

Hemlock employees are not eligible to win this contest, and we will not accept photographs taken from our office! There is no end-date for this contest, and I will update this post with information on how many books are still available, so get snapping!

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Globe 2012: Conference Summary

Posted on March 26, 2012 by | Comments Off

Maria here, Hemlock’s sustainability coordinator. As it is my first post for inklings, I wanted to introduce myself. I started with Hemlock earlier this year, working part time as I finish up my third year as a Sustainable Policy Studies major. My goal is to eventually complete my master’s degree in Urban Planning. My main purpose in life is to find out where I can make an impact that matters, and to do it well. You can expect to see future posts from me on all things environmental. Hemlock’s sustainability committee has many exciting things planned for this year and I can’t wait to share them with you!

The Hemlock team working the Globe 2012 Trade Show Booth

With all of my posts, I encourage you to ask questions and to engage in things that matter to you. Please feel free to share your thoughts with us on this blog, or email me directly.

This week I would like to share with you what I took away from the 2012 Globe Conference, held in Vancouver on March 15th and 16th.

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Energy Assessments for BC Businesses

Posted on January 30, 2012 by | Comments Off

At Hemlock, we have been operating as a carbon neutral facility since 2007, and assessing our energy consumption regularly is a major factor maintaining this status.

Hemlock's Burnaby facility

Hemlock's Burnaby facility, carbon neutral since 2007.

Did you know that if your business spends less than $50,000 a year on electricity, it may qualify for a free energy assessment funded by LiveSmart BC? This is a great opportunity to get your company onto the path of environmental sustainability.

If your business is in the Lower Mainland, contact the City of Vancouver’s advisor today by email or at 604.362.5946 to see if you qualify for the free assessment.

If your business is outside Metro Vancouver, or you would just like more information, visit  the LiveSmart BC website for more details

By greening your business, you’ll be helping to make Vancouver the greenest city in the world by 2020.

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3D Printing

Posted on January 24, 2012 by | Comments Off

I have heard a lot about 3D printing in the past few months, but I haven’t been able to wrap my head around how it works. Well, surprise surprise, here’s a great Ted Talk on the fundamentals of 3D printing:

Ted Talk: A Primer on 3D Printing

So basically it’s a manufacturing process that builds products similar to how images are built on paper by a printer. It’s really fascinating, especially near the end when she talks about scientists doing this with cells.

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Showcase: Blanket ID Pet Tags

Posted on January 9, 2012 by | Comments Off

Variable printing is one feature that sets the HP Indigo digital printers apart from our traditional offset presses. Whether it’s a mailing list, individualized QR codes, or even a personalized URL, each printed impression by our digital printers can have unique copy and images.

Our client, BlanketID, utilized this technology for the packaging of their product – animal ID tags that can help find lost pets. Continue reading →

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