Our Commitment to Sustainability

SmithBates is firmly committed to meeting the needs of our customers while preserving the environment for future generations.  Like you, we work each day to minimize our impact on the environment through sustainable and lean business practices.
 
Our commitment was inspired and is reinforced every time we look from our headquarters at Upper Klamath Lake, the largest freshwater lake in the Northwest and a major stop for migratory birds. Within 40 miles of our plant are Crater Lake National Park, three national forests, six protected marshes, and the largest population of Bald Eagles in the lower 48 states.  So it’s natural that we strive to respect nature in all that we do.
 
Here’s how we partner with you to leave a small footprint, yet make a big difference:

FSC Certified Supplier

SmithBates, as the first privately owned printing company in Southern Oregon to qualify for FSC chain-of-custody certification, offers the opportunity to include the FSC logo to make a sustainability statement on your printed projects. This independent, international certification indicates that products are made to high environmental standards from sustainable forests, recycled materials, or both.

Paper

SmithBates offers a long lineup of paper options with recycled content and FSC chain-of-custody certification. Most paper today contains at least 10% post consumer waste (pcw). Above 30% pcw, more energy may be used to process the waste than to use virgin fiber pulp. We offer many colors, weights and finishes of eco-centric papers in 10%, 30% and 100% pcw. Contact us to preview and select an eco-friendly paper that’s best for your next project.

Presses and Production Processes

SmithBates believes in using state of the art equipment and lean manufacturing production processes to minimize waste, reduce energy and protect natural resources.

Direct Imaging Press

Sustainability meets high-quality, full color short run printing in our Heidelberg Quickmaster Direct Imaging Pro, a fast, highly automated, compact four color digital offset press that efficiently images its own plates internally – without fountain solution or water. The QMDI’s waterless system reduces paper and ink waste during color setup and drying time for finished press sheets, while delivering excellent color consistency.

Alcohol-Free Fountain Solution

Conventional offset presses require fountain solution, which consists of wetting and desensitizing agents with evaporation and corrosion inhibitors. These agents allow the presses to print cleanly, run efficiently and minimize ink and water. SmithBates has modified our processes to use alcohol-free fountain solution, reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by up to 60%.

Chemistry-Free Pre-Press

Before a project even gets to our traditional offset presses, SmithBates uses direct-to-plate imaging, the world’s first chemistry-free platemaking process. By eliminating cameras, darkrooms and chemical processing, we’ve significantly reduced their effect on the environment, as well as our time, labor and materials required for platemaking.

Vegetable-Based Inks

SmithBates uses vegetable-based, blended inks that are easier on the environment than traditional petroleum-based inks. Manufacturers now blend the natural oils from a number of plants for optimal performance, much like a winemaker blends grapes. While conventional inks measure 25%-35% VOCs, the level in vegetable-based inks is only 4%-7%.

Recycling and Disposal

With so much recycled content going into our press sheets, it makes sense to minimize and recycle setup and post-press waste at both the “make ready” and finishing stages. We collect and segment recyclable from non-recyclable waste. We recycle over 7.5 tons of recaptured waste each month, keeping 180,000 pounds of scrap out of the landfill each year, to reappear as recycled paper. Non-recyclable waste, such as chemicals necessary to clean and maintain equipment, is disposed in accordance with all federal, state and local regulations.

Metal Plates

We use the most efficient systems that directly laser artwork to aluminum plates that are so durable we reuse them on future press runs. When the artwork changes or the plates can no longer hold ink, we collect them onsite and recycle them locally, minimizing the use of fossil fuels for transportation.

Ink and Toner

Our copy machines are as eco-friendly as our presses. Along with using recycled copy paper, we recycle all copier toner bottles as well as large format printer ink and cartridges.

Renewable Energy

SmithBates’ goal is to rely on renewable energy sources for at least 30% of our power requirements by partnering with Pacific Power as a Blue Sky Champion and as an EPA Green Partner.

Your Partner in Sustainable Printing

Contact us today to discuss how we can partner with you to achieve high-impact marketing results with the least impact on the environment.