Environmental Policy
I Dress Myself is a responsible business. We recognise that our operations have an impact on the environment and are committed to reducing this.
It is our policy to:
- Use water-based inks that are 100% solvent free with no added formaldehyde. Using water based inks also means that we do not use harmful solvents to clean our screens down after printing - the inks are rinsed away using water.
- Use a low ink consumption film maker that uses more eco-friendly inks than the traditional reprographics film making process.
- Charge proportionately less for organic cotton and bamboo T-shirts to encourage customers to buy these T-shirts and to help minimise the use of harmful pesticides.
- Minimise our use of natural resources. We worked with the Environmental Technology Centre at the University of Nottingham to design and build a conveyor dryer with optimum efficiency for drying water based inks and we choose to filter our waste water before it goes into the sewerage system, even though this is not required.
- Re-use resources where possible rather than dispose of them. We re-use misprinted T-shirts for test printing and then for rags. We use margarine tubs for mixing and storing ink. Paper is printed on both sides and then recycled or used for making compliment slips, notebooks or sketch pads. The cardboard boxes and packaging we receive are re-used using recycled paper labels.
- Use a specialist contractor to recycle as much of our waste as possible.
- Reduce waste. Between June 2008 and June 2009 we reduced our total waste by approximately 43%.
- Encourage the use of recycled materials and recycling initiatives. Much of our studio furniture is second hand and, where possible, unwanted equipment is sold on e-bay or given away. Our product packaging is made using approximately 90% recycled card. Where possible, we use self-gummed paper tape for packaging, rather than plastic tape.
- Comply with all relevant environmental legislation, regulations and requirements.
- Consider the impact of our working and personal lives.
- Ensure that existing and potential clients are aware of our environmental aims and credentials by actively promoting these on our website.
Date: 6th July 2006
Last update: 22nd Feb 2013
