3M Australia is focused on addressing challenges such as energy availability and security; raw material scarcity; human health and safety; and education and development. This approach, combined with its numerous sustainable packaging initiatives, saw 3M recognised at the 2016 APC Awards as winner of the Hardware & Homewares (medium) category.
3M is known for brands such as Scotch, Post-it, 3M, Scotch-Brite, Scotchgard and Nexcare, and has achieved significant packaging improvements in the last reporting period.
Its initiatives have included prioritising packaging redesign projects which would deliver the greatest environmental benefits.
By doing this, it was able to save 1306 kilograms of packaging material across 95 different local projects in 2015. These savings were achieved through a number of simple design changes such as reducing the size of flaps on shippers, carton dimensions, and core sizes.
Globally, 3M hopes to work more closely with the supply chain to purchase raw materials from sustainable and recycled resources so that waste and forestry is reduced. Already, significant reductions in paper use and pallet optimisation has resulted in the saving of 36,000 trees and 365 hectares of trees.
Locally in 2015, 3M Australia recycled more than 260 tonnes of packaging, a five per cent increase on 2014, and reduced power consumption by 24 per cent through the use of more energy-efficient lighting.
Looking ahead, 3M's global sustainability goals include developing more sustainable materials and products; reducing manufacturing waste by an additional 10 per cent, indexed to sales; driving supply chain sustainability through targeted raw material traceability and supplier performance assurance; and achieving “zero landfill” status at more than 30 per cent of manufacturing sites.
