Esprit Graphic Communications Awarded FSC Certification

Esprit Graphic Communications is proud to announce that they have been awarded the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification. Esprit is now certified in the FSC Chain-of-Custody (CoC) manufacturing and material handling guidelines. This Certification gives Esprit's clients the option to purchase printed products that are in compliance with FSC CoC standards and guidelines.

Companies that have been certified as FSC CoC compliant have undergone a rigorous, time-intensive, and expensive process to ensure the integrity of responsibly sourced forest materials from harvest through the final manufacturing process. This certification process was supervised by an independent, third party certification organization.

Certification is the process by which the FSC audits/inspects a printing facility and tests the company's knowledge of certification requirements. Certification is approved or denied based on findings during the inspection.

In order to use FSC trademarks, including the FSC logo, initials "FSC", or phrase "Forest Stewardship Council" on a printed piece, the printer must have chain of custody certification. Without this certification, no claims can be printed regarding FSC-certified content of the paper.

An independent third-party auditor performed Esprit's certification audit. They conducted a physical inspection of Esprit's plant and interviewed employees to verify they were trained on procedures required for handling FSC paper. With many FSC recommended practices already in place, Esprit had little trouble meeting the rigorous standards of the audit. For example, Esprit was already documenting workflow procedures and tracking materials and jobs through its plant, so few additional processes for compliance were required

FSC printed products are produced on papers that are independently certified to meet Forest Stewardship Council standards. The FSC standards sets are to ensure the wood and pulp used in the production process are grown, harvested and manufactured to extremely high environmental standards. All parts of the manufacturing process are audited to ensure adherence to these standards. Only if all of the standards are met can the projects be considered FSC certified and allowed to display the FSC logo.

Mike Novakovich, Esprit Production Manager stated: "As a responsible member of the communities we serve, Esprit is constantly aware of our potential impact on the environment and we work in many ways to operate our business to be as "green" as possible. We think it is important not only to run our business this way, but to also make environmentally conscious options available to our clients as well".

FSC Certification enables Esprit and their clients to actively demonstrate and support sound environmental practices as well as proper forest management. When a printed project includes the FSC logo, it indicates a high degree of environmental stewardship. The FSC logo makes a stronger more positive statement about your company or organization than simply using recycled paper and the recycled logo.

"We're happy to show our "green thumb" to our customers and prospects," says Shannon Novakovich, Esprit's Vice President. "Being an FSC-certified organization demonstrates our commitment to producing our quality finished products in a socially and environmentally conscientious way."