Production and trade generate significantly more waste than private households. This frustrates many people who try to avoid waste in their private lives, leading them to ask: What is my employer actually doing to reduce waste?

Our logistics at Würth Elektronik have declared war on packaging waste. To this end, all processes in which goods are packaged are put to the test. The goal we have set ourselves is to drastically reduce the use of plastics by switching to more sustainable materials.

But what has been done so far to achieve this?

• Würth Elektronik already uses only filling material based on recycled paper in its logistics and also minimizes its consumption by using hold-downs and separating cartons.
• A plastic-free variant is used for padded envelopes.
• The parcel tape that holds the parcels together is developed on a paper basis, and in order to save on adhesive tape overall, cardboard boxes with lids are also increasingly being used.
• Plastic bags are being replaced on a large scale by parchment paper bags, including for the delivery paper bags on the outside of the packages. A small detail with great significance, considering that plastic bags take up to 450 years to decompose in nature. Parchment paper, on the other hand, takes only 5-10 months.

Cartons made from grass?

Investments are continuing. Georgios Stamos, logistics manager in Waldenburg, Germany and environmental manager in the logistics division at Würth Elektronik eiSos revealed in a press release, "We are currently evaluating cardboard boxes that are made of up to 50 percent grass."

It is hoped that these cardboard boxes will prove their worth. With these, water consumption per ton of pulp drops from an average of 6,000 liters to a teensy 2 liters. Energy consumption in production also drops from around 6,000 kilowatt hours to less than 150 kilowatt hours per ton of pulp. Another plus is that no chemicals are needed to process grass. It emits 75 percent less CO2 compared to pulp made from wood. In addition, the use of grass means significantly shorter distances, as grass travels an average of only 100 km to production, whereas regular wood pulp is imported from areas up to 9,000 km away.

Every improvement literally makes a difference here. Also, because we offer free samples and design kits with replenishment as a service for developers, Würth Elektronik's logistics department generates a particularly large number of small shipments.

Georgios Stamos says: "Here and elsewhere, protecting our environment requires a large number of coordinated steps that also involve costs for the company. But reducing packaging waste is a responsibility that we as a workforce and a company are happy to take on with great commitment."

Klick here to find our sustainability area.