Recycling habits: How are SMEs performing?

Recycling is now a central part of our everyday lives – both at home and in the office. Thanks to the spread of knowledge among the public, and the help of local and national authorities, sorting your waste according to its material has almost become a social expectation. But according to new research¹, this environmentally-friendly approach is yet to find its way into every aspect of our business practice.

With all the paper, toner, energy and ink cartridges it requires, printing can be one of the most damaging everyday activities we undertake – if you don’t use the right technology. Despite that, 50% of SMEs and 14% of large enterprises polled were unaware or unconcerned about the impact of their printing habits on the environment¹. While inkjet technology, print policies and certifications can all dramatically reduce the harm printing causes, many of the businesses asked hadn’t considered adopting these methods.

This is all the more surprising when you consider that among the same group, paper recycling and low energy lighting were both fairly common. Given the cost and productivity benefits of deploying more sustainable printing, it’s clear that SMEs need to become better informed if they’re to improve in this respect. Just 26% said they’ve already started using energy-efficient hardware like computers and printers¹.

Even in Germany, where they were shown to be significantly ahead of the rest of Europe by most measures, they had similarly low adoption rates when it came to using efficient IT. Stark differences between larger enterprises and smaller enterprises were also to be found, with 39% of medium-sized businesses being likely to use energy-efficient technology, compared to just 8% of smaller businesses¹. 

This reflects the fact that SMEs lack the resources to evaluate energy efficiency, or keep up with developments in environmental knowledge. If smaller businesses are ever going to catch up with their larger counterparts, technology companies need to take responsibility for sharing their expertise – especially when it comes to the benefits of inkjet printing.

Epson’s inkjet technology uses up to 96%² less energy than competitive alternatives – as well as producing 92%² less C02, and up to 95%² less waste. Discover more at: www.epson.eu/maketheswitch

¹Sustainability study, Quocirca, May 2016

²Based on tests conducted by BLI, 2015. For more information, visit www.epson.eu/inkjetsaving