How sustainable is your design process?

Creating something that’s never been created before – that’s the daily challenge of design engineers. But in tackling every new project, today’s design engineers also must keep the overall carbon footprint of their end products top of mind. Integration of sustainable practices is now a ‘given’ in engineering. And it’s not only the right thing to do, but it’s good for business.

Design approaches such as changing an item’s topology or integrating hollows and latticing can significantly reduce the amount of material needed. Sometimes raw materials can also be swapped out for lighter or recycled materials.

Even more sustainability gains, this time in energy savings, can be achieved if parts integration is possible: designing an item that previously had seven or eight parts into an item with only a few parts, or even a single item.

So, if design engineers can create a product that incorporates recycled and/or lighter materials at the same time less material and energy is needed during manufacturing, the environmental impact of that product is greatly reduced. Everyone wins – the client, the design engineer and the planet.

But what about integrating sustainability into day-to-day working practices themselves? This can be challenging if you don’t know where to begin.

Taking stock of the equipment you use every day is a start. Choosing sustainable tools not only saves on costs but builds a positive reputation among clients and fosters further industry sustainability innovation.

Let’s look at your printer which consumes energy and some type of ink or toner on an ongoing basis. Most printers in the market have not been designed to use less energy. The use of recycled materials is not common.

However, to meet demand from creative professionals for more environmentally conscious tools, HP introduced the new large format HP DesignJet T200, T600 and Studio Printers.

All three products are made with up to 30% recycled plastic. In addition, the HP DesignJet T200, T600 and Studio Printers are the world’s smallest plotters, up to 38% smaller compared to competitive alternatives.

In terms of their efficiency, these HP DesignJet printers are ENERGY STAR® certified by the US Environmental Protection Agency. On an annual basis, they emit up to 7.3 tons less carbon and astonishingly, use up to 95% less ink for routine use compared to similar large-format printers.

Additionally, these HP DesignJet printers work with HP ink cartridges, recyclable at no cost through the HP Planet Partners program. They also use HP Bright Office Inks, providing bright colour and bold image quality for technical document printing on plain paper, including paper that is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC®)-certified.

With the HP DesignJet Studio Printer series, HP has also achieved full carbon neutrality. This means that in accordance with The CarbonNeutral Protocol, HP has offset the remaining carbon impact of this printer, neutralizing the remaining carbon emitted during material extraction and processing, printer manufacture/transportation and so on.

And performance is not sacrificed whatsoever. With its premium print engine, the HP DesignJet T600 Printer series can print a sheet of A1 media in as little as 25 seconds. From set-up to picking up the print job, they are up to 2X faster than their competitors.

By choosing one of HP DesignJet printers, you will be showing your clients that you not only design sustainable products but design sustainably as well.

To find out more about how these HP DesignJet printers can make your design process more sustainable, please visit our website:
https://www8.hp.com/us/en/printers/large-format/designjet-plotters.html