SPI’s Zero Net Waste Program recognizes The Minco Group

Following the launch of its Zero Net Waste program in early 2016, SPI: The Plastics Trade Association, Washington, has announced its first-ever Zero Net Waste company: The Minco Group, a Dayton, Ohio-based provider of thermoplastic solutions.

SPI has focused its efforts on the increased need for the plastics industry to focus on sustainability, and the SPI Zero Net Waste program was created to recognize companies that have taken steps to eliminate waste throughout the plastics manufacturing life cycle.

Under the leadership of SPI’s Senior Director of Recycling and Diversion Kim Holmes, SPI members, including suppliers, processors and recyclers, created the Zero Net Waste program. It is just one of several SPI-led efforts focused on improving sustainability in the plastics industry. The self-reporting Zero Net Waste program entails that companies meet qualification and verification requirements that demonstrate their goals for pursuing zero waste. Companies are asked to submit information annually for ongoing verification, which allows companies to use the Zero Net Waste program logo.

“I lead sustainability efforts that are member-driven,” Holmes says. “I know that our duty goes far beyond end product recycling; it’s about reducing waste throughout the life cycle of making plastics.”

Dan Norris, vice president of The Minco Group, encouraged employee participation in helping SPI create and implement the Zero Net Waste program. The company demonstrated leadership in landfill diversion and waste reduction through efforts spearheaded by Andy Brewer, program manager at All Service Plastic Molding (ASPM), a company owned by The Minco Group, who managed the Zero Net Waste program implementation. Under Brewer’s leadership, ASPM organized a Green Team that leads the Zero Net Waste program at the facility. The team also monitors company progress, which to date has included:

• diverting 88 percent of total manufacturing waste from landfill;
• organizing a 24-hour sort of ASPM waste and categorizing materials into 26 categories;
• decreasing landfill-bound waste weights by 46 percent; and
• projecting a revenue increase of approximately $20,000 for 2017 based on recycling efforts.

“I’ve been working with Kim Holmes’ Recycling Committee and knew that my company was capable of doing our part to make the industry more sustainable,” Brewer says. “I was able to get buy-in from my colleagues by organizing a 24-hour sort in which they learned about all of the many recyclable materials we send to the landfill, in error, every day. From there, our Green Team, which manages our recycling efforts, was born.”

He adds, “We are thrilled to be recognized by SPI and hope that our work helps make the business case for saving costs while saving the planet.”