Images Magazine November 18

help run the equipment. Make sure that you keep these running well with a maintenance plan. You can get an air leak survey from your service provider to help identify small air leaks in your lines. Escaping air puts a drain on the compressor to keep the pressure dialled in. I had this performed and we found numerous air leaks that totalled over $4,500 (approximately £3,400) a year in electrical costs to keep the pressure at the set level. Look at your energy usage – what lights are you using, do they need to be on the whole day? Are they all low energy bulbs? What equipment is being left on standby each night? Could you reduce heating costs in the office by insulating it? Are you heating the unit at the weekend when no one‘s in? Also, out-dated or ill-functioning equipment can add to your overall energy drain by not being as efficient. The electrical draw may be the same as for new equipment, but if you have to work slower or do something twice, that is a hidden cost that adds up. H ow green is your shop? And I don’t mean how often you print with Pantone 354. Currently, there is a lot of movement towards operating decorated apparel shops with a sustainability mindset. This stems not just from wanting to protect the environment, but also from the associated cost savings. Plus, more and more consumers are actively asking suppliers for sustainable options. You see this with the desire to replace single-use shopping bags, purchase shirts made from recycled or organic content, and use packaging that is sourced from recycled origins. Do you want to lose your customers to a more ‘green‘ competitor? Like anything in business, though, this takes a strategy and effort to make it work. Starting with the obvious The number one way you can drop your costs in this business is by controlling your energy. Take a look at the power consumption in your shop. Many shops use an air compressor to Howto develop a sustainable garment decoration business Focus on efficiency Waste in your shop isn’t always what you are throwing away in your trash bin. Instead, think about how often you do any rework or extra effort to achieve the desired result. For screen printers, every time you double stroke the print to get more opacity, that is wasted effort. If you think about it, it is a symptom of not having the correct processes in place to be able to have the desired opacity with a single stroke. Have you ever stopped to think about why you have to double stroke a screen? Maybe your issue is that you are not coating your screens properly. It could be that you don’t have decent tensioned screens. Are you using sharpened squeegees with the proper print angle? This same idea can easily translate into other areas of your shop. Take a minute to stop and observe exactly how things are being done in your company. Are there instances where you have to repeat something or apply extra effort to achieve success? I’ll bet you are walking around these Looking to boost your eco-credentials? Marshall Atkinson has some suggestions on how to save the planet (and your money) BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT www.images-magazine.com 40 images NOVEMBER 2018

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