Cox Printers of Linden, N.J., already has a 36-kW solar energy system and two wind turbines on its roof, partially powering a five-color press and pre-press operations. Now Cox has decided to share the wealth of solar energy.
Cox is sponsoring a portion of a solar panel installation that will be installed on a local Veterans of Foreign Wars post to provide clean, renewable energy and financial savings to the post. The Adopt-a-Solar-Panel program combines the causes of green energy, veterans in need of employment — SolarCure employs veterans for promotion and installation — and support for the nonprofit community. Program participants receive the benefit of green branding and publicity from their sponsorship.
Cox Printers has long been branded as green printers. In addition to the solar installation and wind turbines, the commercial printer recycles more than 10,000 pounds of paper each month and planning for their 2014 campaign to plant trees each month based on their paper consumption; uses non-petroleum-based inks; recycles its wooden skids into industrial-grade mulch; has high-efficiency lighting throughout the building; and maintains a roof garden to help with water runoff. The flowers are pollinated by the printer’s own two honey bee hives housed on the roof which yielded 60 pounds of honey for this fall’s harvest.
“All this costs money but we do it for three reasons,” said Mike Kaufman, president and owner of Cox Printers. “First, I’m a father and I feel it’s the right thing to do, to leave the planet better than I found it. And it’s not hard to do.
“Second, as an investment it eventually breaks even — we’re saving $500 to $600 a month off of our electric bill plus the value of the solar SREC’s. Third, there’s the benefit of public relations. If you are a person or a company who claims to care about your environmental report card, when you work with us your printing is done by the greenest printer in New Jersey and beyond.”
For Kaufman, the opportunity to participate in SolarCure’s Adopt-a-Solar-Panel Program is another chance to “walk the walk,” he said. “I can donate to a veteran cause, train a veteran and put a solar panel on a VFW post. Show me the negative.”
— Solar Builder magazine
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