Is sustainability a priority?

A key reason for partnering with Prodigi is that they strive to be an efficient, sustainable, ethical business, and work hard to mitigate their impact on the environment, whilst actively benefiting the communities in which they work. As examples:

-Wood and pulp is 100% sourced from sustainably managed forests, i.e. forests which meet the needs of wildlife while supporting livelihoods and providing many other ecosystem services, such as carbon storage and flood risk mitigation.

-Print labs use neo pigment, water-based inks, which are 100% non-hazardous, toxin-free and vegan friendly. They meet the strictest industry standards as defined by Oeko-Tex 100, Global Organic Textiles (GTOTS-3V), and Residues Standard List (RSL).

-Packaging is made from recycled materials. Plastics are avoided wherever possible. Where this isn’t practical, environmentally friendlier plastics are used, such as biodegradable OPP bags as well as plastic bags and protective bubble wrap that can be recycled at special collection points. Prodigi is prototyping eco-friendly alternatives to bubble wrap. Packages are free of labels, hangtags and leaflets.  

-Product options include products which biodegrade, or are made from up to 100% recycled plastic.

-Prodigi adheres to the Fair Labour Association Code of Conduct, partners where possible with suppliers who are ISO 14001, ISO 24000 or ISO 26000 compliant, and actively seeks to work with print labs that use renewable energy over standard grid electricity. As a minimum, all partners must adhere to anti child labour and anti forced labour regulations, as well as provide traceability for all core raw materials.

-Prodigi’s production facilities run on Continuous Improvement (Kaizen) principles and Total Quality Management (TQM) processes. This process ensures that all employees are responsible for their own quality and that products meet exacting standards. 

-Processes are Value Stream Mapped to minimise the five applicable wastes of lean manufacturing: Motion, Waiting, Over-Processing, Overproduction, and Defects (Failure Mode Effect Analysis is deployed to try to pre-emptively break processes).

-Distributed production means products are produced closer to the end consumer, significantly reducing carbon emissions.

Sustainability is a moving target. We are monitoring Prodigi’s progress in the areas of energy efficiency, potable and non potable water consumption, waste to landfill, materials usage, transport carbon emissions, and ethical procurement.