Fuji Xerox NZ seeks sustainability
April 15, 2019
The OEM’s Kiwi division is hoping to lead by example when it comes to sustainable business practices.
According to New Zealand’s IT Brief, the OEM “has already made waves, by contributing towards a circular economy that works.”
IT Brief calls sustainability “one of the most important ways by which consumers choose to purchase from a particular company,” adding that one that doesn’t display sustainable business practices and an environmental mindset “will find itself at a disadvantage to those companies that are doing their part to create a circular economy.”
With office devices and consumables generating significant amounts of waste, it is particularly incumbent upon companies within the office imaging industry to embrace the mantra of sustainability, which is exactly what Fuji Xerox NZ is aiming to do.
The OEM’s methods in doing this include “no longer using hazardous materials, as well as building devices that use less energy overall,” IT Brief explains, as well as diverting products from landfill at the end of their life, through circular product design.
Another of Fuji Xerox NZ’s initiatives is its Product Stewardship scheme, a free take-back programme for all of its customers’ machines, used parts, and consumables. Over 4,000 customers have already registered for user toner collection, with the OEM already diverting 700 tonnes of used product from landfill every year, and recycling or reusing 99.5 percent of what it takes back. Fuji Xerox NZ was also “the first in its industry” to be accredited by the Minister for the Environment for the scheme.
Waste toner collected by the Product Stewardship scheme has been combined with other waste substances, such as motor oil, to create a low-carbon asphalt called TonerPave, which was developed with Close The Loop in partnership with Downer.
TonerPave has been used in more than 1,000 kilometres of roads across Australia, and now Fuji Xerox NZ is leading a collaborative project with its Kiwi partners to expand the use of TonerPave across New Zealand, using a grant award by the Ministry for the Environment’s Waste Minimisation Fund, with IT Brief calling the scheme a demonstration of “what is possible when businesses focus on sustainability.”
The OEM’s sister business, Fuji Xerox Australia, has also been flaunting its green credentials recently, with the opening of a new eco-manufacturing centre, boasting “recycled rubber flooring, smart power and air con and recycled furniture.”
Categories : Around the Industry
