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Leo Paper Group Director CM Yeung (left) receives an environmental award from Hong Kong Financial Secretary John Tsang for the company’s “Five-Year
Environmental Plan”
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Printing companies are not commonly associated with green practices, but Hong Kong’s Leo Paper Group has proven otherwise. Set up in 1982, the company specialises in printing books as well as producing paper products, including photo frames and stationery.
“Leo has been striving to build a Zero Waste Factory by recycling, reuse and reducing,’’ says CM Yeung, Leo’s Director for environmental, equipment and outsourcing management.
Leo Paper’s environmental drive began in 1994, when it set up the first phase of its waste-water treatment facility during construction of its Heshan factory in the Chinese mainland’s southern Guangdong Province. After completing two phases of upgrades two years ago, the plant now treats more than 8,100 cubic metres of waste water each day. Quality exceeds Guangdong’s standard requirement, as well as the Grade I national standard.
“Leo has effectively reduced waste-water discharge and exhaust emission, preventing water and air pollution. Reuse of waste water has led to a reduction in our production costs,” Mr Yeung says.
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Leo Paper employees sign a charter supporting the company’s Green Harmony drive
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But the company didn’t stop there. It also installed automatic cleaning devices on its offset printing machines, saving nearly 2,500 kilogrammes of water annually for each machine. The device also helps cuts down emissions from volatile organic compounds.
To further improve air quality, ventilators were installed on screen-printing machines and activated carbon used in the production area.
Power-saving devices installed on big machinery, meanwhile, cut electricity consumption by eight percent.
Energy-saving measures were also adopted beyond the production floor. The company reconfigured everything from its lighting – by switching to the energy-efficient T5 globe – to its air-conditioning, which now, thanks to a heat-pump system, transfers excess energy into heating the water system for the factory’s staff quarters.
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Clean Technology
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The Hong Kong Government has been actively encouraging Hong Kong factories based in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) to upgrade to cleaner production methods.
Last year, the government, together with the Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC), launched a HK$93 million programme in the PRD. Under the five-year Cleaner Production Partnership Programme with Guangdong, the HKPC provides professional services in conjunction with more than 100 environmental technology service providers in the PRD. The goal is to help factories there adopt cleaner production technology. The scheme has approved more than 330 projects since its launch in April last year.
In his policy speech last week, Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang said that the government will extend the programme to help Hong Kong business in treating and reducing waste-water discharge. He said this would complement Guangdong’s policy on the development of industrial parks and provide technical support for Hong Kong manufacturers relocating to the parks.
About one-third of the United Nations’ Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects are carried out on the mainland, which involves substantial capital and major technology transfer. Eligible Hong Kong companies can now participate in CDM projects on the mainland.
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Green Harmony
Mr Yeung is the first to admit that the measures help the company’s bottom line – not to mention its image. But, he insists, there’s a driving principle behind all the effort.
“We have been continuously implementing energy-saving measures to influence society. Green Harmony is our environmental philosophy, a way for us as manufacturers to protect the environment and give back to the community. Through green production, we hope to spur our suppliers and customers to join forces with us.’’
The company’s efforts have caught the attention of authorities and business groups, which have honoured Leo Paper with a collection of environmental awards, including the Hong Kong Awards for Industries’ Environmental Performance Grand Award, and the Hang Seng Pearl River Delta Environmental Award. And the company was chosen to be one of four Hong Kong businesses to serve as models of green production practices.
The company’s green policy has also inspired employees. Last year, factory staff signed a charter in support of the company’s Green Harmony mission.
“We have concentrated on building a green culture among our staff,’’ Mr Yeung says. “We have held lots of training and talks in an effort to raise awareness on environmental protection, aiming to cultivate what we call ‘Green Leonians,’ by building good habits."
To ensure effective implementation of each green project, Leo has set up committees to work out energy-saving plans and monitor the progress of each project.
Related Links
Hong Kong Productivity Council
Leo Paper Group
