Green Technology

Going green is the new gold standard in today’s business world, and people everywhere are trying to make their environmental footprints a little less boot-like. This is due to a heightened awareness about the sensitivity of our planet’s ecosystem and a turn away from our resource-heavy consuming ways. Indeed, being outed as an enemy of the environment can become a major source of embarrassment, which is why looking for ways to increase your company’s efficiency can attract clients and help you sleep easy.

Of all of the resource-churning machines working in your office, there might not be a bigger offender than the copy machine. It spews out paper and drinks up chemical ink at such high speeds that it’s only natural to start your eco-friendly initiative by examining green technology in the world of copiers.

Amir Benishay works with the Fort Lauderdale, FL copier leasing service World Trade Office, and he says that with modern technology, there’s no need for your copier to be as inefficient as copiers once were. “With technology today,” Benishay begins, “there is a major focus on making things more environmentally friendly. While there once was a time when it wasn’t a big thing that manufacturers took into consideration, it’s now a selling point, so they have tried to accommodate the recent trends.”

One way to make sure that you’re using more efficient machines is to look for copiers that have earned the Energy Star seal of approval. Energy Star is the international standard for consumer products in the United States, and it ensures that technology complies with a certain standard of energy efficiency. Typically, an Energy Star machine is 40% more efficient than its non-certified counterparts, and as such, it can even add up to energy savings down the line. This energy efficiency also contributes to the machine lasting longer.

Additionally, says Benishay, there are now new features within copier machines that make them more environmentally friendly above and beyond just efficiency. “One of the worst offending parts inside a printer is the ink cartridge. Usually, toner comes with the cartridge, and inside there is the ink and the toner…today, they are working with a plastic that is like a little cube or Lego part that you just pack in the machine, and it is 100% reusable, so there is no garbage or waste.”

Ink cartridges can be such a severe source of waste that ink cartridge recycling posts have been set up in Office Depots, Staples, and other locations around the country. But with this new technology, one doesn’t even need to recycle his ink cartridges, since there is no waste.

There are also improvements to the technology itself that makes printers more efficient. One such example is double-sided printing, which can cut the amount of paper used in half. Additionally, in an office environment such as a doctor’s office, one might use up entire sheets of paper just to make a copy of a single driver’s license or ID card. However, Benishay and other professional copier distributors now offer machines specially designed to read cards on both sides, as well as the ability to read multiple cards, and then print on a single sheet of paper.

Benishay says that all of these things can add up to a great deal of savings both in terms of money and in carbon emissions. Such a win-win scenario doesn’t come along often, so consider upgrading your office copiers and keep the planet clean today.