Kodak has awarded Malaysia's largest media group, The New Straits Times Press (NSTP), with the prestigious KODAK SONORA Plate Green Leaf Award . NSTP is the first winner of the award in South East Asia and the second winner in the Asia-Pacific region. The New Straits Times Press, established in 1845 when it published its first print edition and now reaching more than 5.6 million readers, is being recognized for its efforts to reduce the environmental impact of its operations.
As the leading publisher of print newspapers in Malaysia, NSTP manages four printing plants across the country for its portfolio of six daily newspapers. Over the past several years, the company has taken numerous steps to become more sustainable as part of its focus to allocate significant resources to protect the environment. With a considerable amount of capital invested in materials, NSTP has worked to improve materials management, reducing wastage of paper by over 24%. Investment in press system upgrades since 2012 have continued to increase in-house efficiency by reducing start up copies and printing registrations. NSTP also sends 100% of its paper waste to Malaysian Newsprint Industries (MNI) for recycling.
The introduction of SONORA Process Free Plates in 2015 to its Headquarter manufacturing site builds on NSTP's focus on upgrading its pre-press operations. With SONORA Plates, which eliminate all processing steps including water, chemicals and energy, NSTP aims to reduce dramatically waste from its pre-press operations in the coming years.
Evandro Matteucci, Vice President & Director of Product Management, Kodak, Print Systems Division commented: "NSTP is one of Malaysia's most respected and admired brands. It has earned this reputation by investing over the long term to create the best news and entertainment products for over two centuries. NSTP's moves to become a more sustainable printer build on this legacy of excellence."
Beyond investments in greener printing technology, NSTP also focuses on efforts to reduce its environmental impact across its physical plant operations. The company uses energy efficient equipment and monitors energy usage and greenhouse gas emission. It also monitors water usage and extensively recycles paper and e-waste.
Significant growth in the demand for process-free plates has coincided with the commercial print industry's devotion to developing and integrating sustainable solutions. SONORA Plates remove the need for the plate processor, eliminating chemicals, water, and energy and therefore generating no waste from processing. Kodak is seeing rapid growth in SONORA Plate adoption, with plate volume increasing significantly over the past year with an expected growth rate of more than 50 percent by the end of 2015.
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