This document lists the various materials that are recycled at Quad/Graphics, including paper, plastics, e-scrap, commingled food and beverage containers, metal, and wood. It also provides the recycling volumes for these materials in 2014, with the largest amounts being 582,832 tons of paper and 6,231 tons of metal. The document emphasizes Quad/Graphics' commitment to reducing, reusing, and recycling materials according to the waste hierarchy.

1. • Aerosol cans
• Batteries
• Beverage containers
(aluminum and plastic)
• Cardboard
• Carpeting and padding
• Ceiling tiles
• Construction site waste
• Compost
• E-Scrap (obsolete
electronic equipment)
• Fluorescent lamps
• Ink filters
• Latex gloves
• Lighting fixtures
• Lumber and scrap wood
• Nylon sacks
• Oil filters
• Paint cans
• Pallets (wood and plastic)
• Paper (including
production and office)
• Paper roll core plugs, end
caps and wraps
• Plastic containers
• Polywrap
• Press plates
• Quadnews (after it’s been
read, of course)
• Rubber mats
• Scrap metal
• Shrink bundling and
stretch film
• Stitcher wire spools
• Strapping (all colors)
• Telecommunications
cabling
• Toner cartridges
what we recycle at Quad…
recclinoles
2014 RECYCLING VOLUMES
While not fully comprehensive, this list highlights the many materials we collect for recycling in our facilities.e
NotE: The recycling figures above are close approximations for 2014 companywide based on the best available
reporting systems and data. We are continuing to integrate our recycling program across all facilities.
The Golden Rules
of Recycling:
• Do not place trash
with recyclables.
• Do not place
recyclables in
the trash.
• Do not mix together
different types of
recyclables (e.g.,
don’t mix paper and
commingled items).
Recycling is my pet project – and a responsibility we take seriously at Quad/Graphics.
As the company’s Environmental Spokesgoat, I’m bleating proud of all that we do to
practice the 4 Rs – redesign, reduce, reuse and recycle. By minimizing our impact on
the environment, we also better our business. So you, too, can appreciate the scope of
our commitment and understand its importance to the bottom line, I’ve prepared
this special report on our recycling success in 2014.
RECYCLING REPORT
Gruff’s
What’s the waste hierarchy? AA
a guiding philosophy behind our commitment to waste reduction, the waste hierarchy begins
with reducing the amount of materials we use in the course of doing business, followed by
reusing and recycling as much as possible when it’s beneficial for the environment and our
bottom line. as a company, we recover the vast majority of our solid waste – to the tune of 98.7%
– and divert it for recycling. And what we can’t recycle, we look to dispose of responsibly.
REdesign/Reduce – The most desirable
option. We first look to minimize the amount
of raw materials we use in our plants.
Reuse – After reducing, we then look to
get the most out of the materials we do use.
For example, the hot melt glue we use in
Finishing comes in large boxes we reuse to
collect recyclables such as green strap and
stretch film. We also reuse skids that come
into our plants with supply orders.
Recycle – With materials we can’t
reuse, the next best option in most cases
is recycling them. Recycling maximizes
renewable resources and minimizes the
need for virgin materials.
Dispose – Sending waste to a landfill
is the least desirable of our options. Only
after we’ve exhausted all other options
do we send waste to certified landfills,
where we can dispose of it in the most
environmentally responsible manner.
PapertonsP
582,832 TONS
Includes: production
spoilage and trim;
damaged and salvaged
rolls; roll wraps,
end caps and core plugs;
packaging; paper dust; office paper
Paper is smack-dab in the center of our waste-
reduction crosshairs. We first look to reduce the
amount of paper we use through efficient design
and equipment controls. Waste we can’t avoid
is collected and recovered for recycling. We take
great care to isolate paper grades and control
contaminants to maintain the integrity of the
repulpable scrap so that it’s of maximum value to
our paper mill partners. In fact, we’re able to sort
paper into 24 different grades for recycling.
PlastictonsP
1,698TONS
Includes: Production
floor strapping of
all colors; polywrap;
shrink bundling film;
stretch film; toner cartridges;
large-size liquid containers; stitcher spools;
miscellaneous scrapA
Toner cartridges make up a small percentage
of our plastic recyclables, but a relatively new
program to recycle them is expanding nationally
across our footprint with success.
E-SCRAP tonsCP
102TONS
Includes: Monitors;
keyboards; central
processing units
(CPUs); hard drives;
mice; cabling; printers
We work with a recycling vendor to scrap
our obsolete and damaged computer
equipment. The vendor processes the parts,
sorting them into 30 different categories of
plastic and metal.
COMMINGLED
FOOD/
BEVERAGE
CONTAINERStons
90 TONS
Includes: #1 and #2 plastic;
aluminum; glass; tinMRL
Recycling technologies allow large
companies and households alike to place
plastic, glass, small metals and paper into a
single container for recycling. Quad/Graphics
collects common recyclables such as
aluminum cans, glass beverage bottles,
plastic soda/water bottles and other rigid
plastics. These materials are delivered to
single stream recycling facilities.
MetaltonsP
6,231TONS
Includes: press plates
and blankets; copper
shavings from gravure
cylinder engraving; bulk
stitcher wire spools; copper
wire; aerosol cans; miscellaneous scrapI
In many cases, scrap metal from production is
sent to processors to be sorted, melted down
and recycled. For example, copper shavings
and used aluminum press plates can be melted
down at very high temperatures (a process
called smelting). Once fully molten, the metals
are molded into small bars called ingots and
allowed to cool. These ingots are then
distributed to manufacturers and re-melted
to be made into different products, such as
aluminum cans for soft drinks.
Woodtons
6,088TONS
Includes: Damaged
pallets; lumber;
scrap wood
Pallets past their functional
prime are either dismantled and used in the
assembly of new pallets, or processed into
mulch, boiler fuel or other usable product. The
amount of wood we recycle will continue to
trend downward as we replace wood pallets
with reusable plastic pallets.